The Dream of Dragons

Wings Of Fire:
The Dream of Dragons
The Events in this Book take place almost ten thousand years before the Darkstalker was born, on a Continent never mentioned in the myths of Pyrrhia or Pantala. This Continent was called Palkenos.
Prologue:
Running. If Dreamer had to describe herself in one word, it would totally be Running. She ran from responsibility, her parents, even herself.
And the reason for that running was the one thing she could tell no one. And right now, Dreamer was running once again. Where will I go? She thought. The only place I can think of is… And we don’t even know if the other continents are real or not. She looked beside her. There he was, perfect and smiling at her with his big toothy mouth. “So, Flameater, what’s next for us?” Dreamer asked. “I don’t know what, I only know who with. But I think we should head for Pantala, since it’s the closest to us according to the myths. Well, if there really ARE other continents. If not, then…”
But Dreamer knew it was real. Her powers, not owned by any other dragon, had told her that. I don’t know much. But one thing I do know is that this is where the world changes forever. And I can’t wait to see what it’s like.    
1,300 years later…
Part I:
The Dreamer
Chapter 1
Running. Who WOULDN’T be running if they’re late for their first fourth-grade class and don’t want to come home to an angry dragon-mom who’s going to spit fire at you until your head melts off if you aren’t there in time?
I’m gonna be late! I REALLY don’t want to have to deal with mom being angry at me again! Her mother, Nighttrail, was generally acknowledged to be the most strict person in their tribe, the Dreamwings. Starseeker made it to the doorway just in time for class. A few dragons looked up, but quickly moved their gaze back to their papers. Obviously. They don’t want me to read their minds. 
She went to her desk and moved her things carefully inside. But the urge in her brain was too strong. She looked up and glanced at the teacher. I wish I could just go back to the queen’s army already. I hate having to teach these stupid kids. Especially Starseeker. But at least she does her work without bothering me every five seconds. Oh gosh, I bet she heard that. And that’s why I don’t like mind rea…  Voidcatcher’s mind trailed off as she went into politics. Starseeker looked across the room at Nightmare. As always, he was thinking about everything all at once. His thoughts were a jumble, and jumped from one thought to another. Where’s Abyss? Any threats? That window looks a little unsturdy, I could push a dragon out of there if any was attacked. Starseeker is looking at me. Oh. Right. Hi Star. Starseeker gave a little wave. After school, Starseeker flew home and landed on her wood porch. Her little sister, Memory, was sitting in one of the smaller chairs, asleep. What? How long has she been out here? She thought. 
She gently nudged Memory so that she woke up. “Mmmm… Hi Star. Mommy went out to get dinner, so I've been out here for a little while.” Starseeker picked up her little sister and brought her to her bed. “I bet you’re hungry. I’ll go get something on the beach.” She went outside and snatched a crab from its hiding place, skewering it on her claw. “Here, Memory, You can have half.” She split the crab in two and handed her the bigger side. After eating, they heard a knock. “Who is it?” Called Starseeker. She heard a muffled voice reply. “It’s Nightmare. I… I have bad news. Can I come in?” Memory toddled over to the door and reached up and grabbed the handle. She gently tugged on the door so that it creaked open. “What news?” She said. 
“It’s about your mother, Nighttrail. She’s… She’s dead. I’m so sorry.”
Cobalt was pretty much your average dragon, all in all. He lived a life like any other Bluewing. Hunting, Eating, Playing, Sleeping. The general stuff. 
The only thing that separated him from everyone else (Well, other than that… other thing. We’ll get to that soon!) … Cobalt was a Hybrid. That was probably the most annoying thing to tell someone in their tribe, since Bluewings were all about “We must protect the heritage of our people! Blah blah blah unnecessary shouting and hatred for no reason whatsoever why am I so annoying!” The queen especially hated Cobalt. The only reason he wasn’t thrown out was because he was useful. He had a power dragons hadn't had millenia. Cobalt, of all dragons, could see the future. Queen Turquoise knew that if she cast him out, she couldn’t use that power. So she made him right down every thread of time and predict anything that happened.
In his spare time, he loved to read about the history of Palkenos, the land where Bluewings, Dreamwings, Lightwings and Darkwings lived. Hybrids like Cobalt were very rare on Palkenos, so he couldn’t find any scrolls on them. But the one other thing that he loved to read about was Pyrrhia. He spent hours and hours researching the dragons that lived there, their culture, and their kingdoms.
“Cobalt! Breakfast!” Called his mother. Cobalt’s parents, Sky and Crescent, were sitting at the table eating a small boar. “Morning.” Said Lunar, his older sister. “Good morning.” Said Cobalt. “I’m excited for fourth grade! It’ll be interesting learning about Pantala and Pyrrhia.” He said eagerly. Cobalt really was happy about finally learning all there was to know about the continents. “That’s great, honey! I hope you like it in your new school.” After eating, Cobalt grabbed his things and flew out of the window.
Soon after leaving, He bumped into a small, greenish blue dragon with black ears. Instantly, his mind flew into a torrent of visions. Him, older, ripping off the talons of four purple dragons. Him laughing maniacally while writhing in front of a gilded statue. A reddish orange dragon ripping off his horn victoriously with a wide grin. Cobalt was smacked back into consciousness and immediately realized:
I’m falling.
1,100 years ago…
Sola was shy. Everybody she had ever known knew that about her. And going to school wasn’t exactly going to make her happy. 
“Why do I have to go?” Said Sola quietly. “I REALLY don’t want to go.” Sola looked up at her mother in sadness. Her mother, Lugh, laughed softly. “Honey, you need education. You can’t just sit around hoping to learn things about the world. We need to get you something to do other than laying around and playing at the beach.” She replied. “But I don’t like being around other people…” Sola said. Her mother sighed and left her room. Why can’t I just stay here? I don’t like other dragons, and staying home isn’t that bad…
“Come eat dinner, Sola. We can discuss this tomorrow.” Called Lugh. Sola got up and walked to the table. “What if dragons hate me because I'm an animus? Maybe I should enchant something to make people like me…” She muttered under her breath. “What’s that?” Said Lugh, looking at a small carving of a four-leaf clover Sola was holding. “Nothing to worry about.” Sola said quickly.
After eating, she sat up and went outside to watch the sun setting on the horizon. A flap of wings notified her a dragon was coming. Oh, I bet it’s him. That scoundrel. “Sunbeam, I know you’re there. Just come sit with me.” Giggled Sola. Then a big white-and-yellow face peeked up out of the bushes. “Hi Sola.” He said in his booming voice. “What are you doing?” He said, walking over to sit next to her. “Just watching the sunset.” She replied. Does he think I'm weird? Maybe I could enchant something t- NO. If he loves me, he loves me. “Sunbeam… I think I'm in love with you.” Said Sola. Sunbeam blushed and covered his eyes. “Really? I mean… That’s great- Or- Uhhh… I think what I want to say is… me too.” He said. Now it was Sola’s turn to blush. “Sunbeam, I don’t know why, but I have this odd feeling. Just like… Like the whole world is changing forever.”
Chapter 2
All Cobalt knew was that he was falling. Oh man oh man oh man. What do I do!? Why won’t my wings work!? He thought frantically.
Cobalt looked over at his wings. Oh no. A huge gash was spread across one of his wings, wider than his arm. He gritted his teeth and looked around for something to stop him from falling head-first onto the ground. There! A tall palm tree! Cobalt used his remaining wing to fly closer to the tree and collapsed onto it. 
Phew. I’m alive. Wait, who did that? Who cut my wing? He looked at the gash in his wing and heaved himself up. I need to get help. “Help! Is anybody here? He said, looking around the school gardens. “Hello?” A voice called back. Oh, thank the moons. It’s Lunar! “Lunar! Help!” Cobalt shouted. He heard a flap of wings and Luna was standing next to him. “Don’t worry, Cobalt. I’ll get hel…” Cobalt closed his eyes and passed out. When he woke up, he was in his bed, his parents discussing something with a doctor in the kitchen. Cobalt got up and walked into the room. “Oh, Cobalt! Thank Dreamer you’re alright!” His mother cried. She ran over and hugged him. “I’m alright, mom. I’m just glad I didn’t die.” He laughed softly. 
“But I wonder who cut me.” It was the dragon of blue and green…  Said a part of his brain he didn’t recognize. He wasn’t certain that this was correct, but it seemed like a good explanation on account of all the things he saw in that dragon’s future. And if someone was trying to kill him… then he would never be safe.
2 years later
Ever since Starseeker had moved to the Jungle of the Dreamwings with her aunt Deepmind, she hadn’t fit right in their culture. 
One easy example was Dream-Telling. Dreamwings could read each other's dreams from their mind like a scroll. Starseeker was always particularly jealous of that power. Her little sister had to come too, and she now spent most of her days reading in silence, mostly about Dreamer. 
Dreamer was the founder of the Isles of Dreamers where the four tribes rested in peace. “Star, it’s time to go hunting.” Said Memory, pushing aside her scroll. “Fine…” She flew out the window and landed in a small clearing, spotting a small boar. That should be fine. She thought, flying down to catch it. As she did, she crashed into another dragon heading for the same boar. 
“Ack! I’m so sorry!” Said Starseeker. But then she realized something. This dragon was not the normal pink-purple gradient the dreamwings were. She was a pale yellow. “A… Are you a Lightwing?” Said Starseeker. She reached out and touched her hand. Instantly she could tell something was wrong. Nothing happening in this dragon’s head was happening in this time period. This dragon, in some way, shape or form, had traveled through time. 
In the two years that passed after meeting that weird green dragon, (his name was Froghop), Cobalt moved into the safety of the castle walls. 
The rules were strict there, and the only reason he was let in was because of his prophetic abilities. I wish father or mother were here. Cobalt’s parents had gone away to fight in the war with the Lightwings, and he had no idea when they’d be back.
Cobalt lay on his bed, thinking about what to do. On one talon, he could go sneak onto the battlefield and fight with them. On the second talon, he could just stay here. But on the third talon… Cobalt could go find Starseeker. He could find her, and Sola, and they could save the world. That was just another one of his many visions, but in the current timeline of events spread out before his mind, It seemed like the most likely one. So he hopped up onto his window sill and leaped into the air. By now, of course, his wing had healed, but he hadn’t flown for a while, so it was a little odd. But once Cobalt got a steady air current under his wings, he flew into the pitch black night, with only his visions and the stars and moons above, to guide him. After several hours of flying, Cobalt decided to land in a small clearing in the middle of a huge jungle. 
There was a tiny lake near the edge of the clearing, probably full of the dangerous plants he’d read all about in his scrolls about Pantala. When Cobalt looked up at a small purplish-black dragon staring at a pale yellow one. Immediately, Cobalt felt as if he had been smacked in the face with a windowpane. His visions were so intense this time it was as if they were really happening. 
I’ll spare telling you of the horrors that he saw in these visions, as it would be unnecessary and much too gory. book. When Cobalt came to, this pale yellow dragon was standing over him. “AGH!” Shouted Cobalt. “You’re… You’re a Lightwing! Like from the war!” Cobalt picked up an especially sharp stick and pointed it at the dragon. The small black dragon, (Presumably a Darkwing,) just stood beside the yellow one, and both of them looked confused. The Lightwing came forward and sat down on the soft ground beneath them. “I’m Sola. And I think… I think I time-traveled to get here.”
Chapter 3
“TIME TRAVELED!?” Shouted the blue dragon. Sola hushed him, and he quieted down. “What do you mean time traveled? That’s not possible! Unless… Unless you’re… I have heard that very rarely, Lightwings could be… But then… You’re an animus!?” He shouted again. And again, Sola put a talon on his mouth. 
“Be quiet! There are Dreamwings living here that would happily kill us for invading their territory! Alright. Now let’s get down to business. You’re Cobalt, right?” Asked Sola. Cobalt nodded. 
Sola pointed to Starseeker. “You know who she is?” Cobalt nodded. “Starseeker.” “Yes, but you can call me Star.” Said Starseeker. Cobalt then turned to meet Sola’s eyes. “So… How did you get here?” He asked. Sola sighed and began her story. “I lived more than a thousand years ago. In time, when Dreamer died, war broke out amongst the tribes. I intended to save everyone by finding dragons from the future that could help me. But it seems you’re in a situation as bad as we’re in, so I suppose I'll just return and try to figure out what to do on my own.” But before Sola could enchant a Cocoa bean to return her to her own time period, Cobalt grabbed her arm. “We can help!” He said. Sola shot him a startled look before grinning and nodding. “Well then.” Said Sola. She held up the bean, and Starseeker and Cobalt put their talons onto it. The three suddenly disappeared, wondering how long it would be until they returned again.
Starseeker blinked one, twice and three times. Where… Before she could even ask herself that question, Cobalt leaned over her. “Ack!” She said, scrambling to her feet. “Oh… Hi, Cobalt.” His thoughts muttered, Is she going to hurt me? Can she read my m- wait. STAR! ARE YOU READING MY MIND!? STOP IT!
Cobalt stared at her, frowning. “Fine…” Said Starseeker. She walked over to help Sola up when she saw something breathtaking. Huge spires thousands of feet tall stretched high above a large palace in the center of an enormous courtyard. “Wait, that’s not right…” Said Sola. “That wasn’t here when I left… Oh! We must have traveled too far into the past. I’ll just enchant something to return us to the right time. So she picked up the Cocoa bean again, and enchanted it once again to return them to her own time period. They all held onto the nut again and… Nothing happened.
A few minutes passed with the three of them all awkwardly standing there. “Sola… You did enchant it, right?” Cobalt asked. Sola put the bean down and looked at the two of them with a sad look in her eyes. “Yes. I did enchant it. But I'm afraid I can’t re-enchant it. Something is preventing me from doing that. I’m… I’m so sorry, but I think we’re stuck here.
“Stuck!? Sola, you can fix this, right?” Shouted Cobalt. “I’m afraid not. The only choice we really have is going to that enormous castle over there. The owner might have some answers for us. Now that I think about it, it kind of looks like…” 
But before Sola could finish, Starseeker grabbed her and Cobalt and rushed them towards the palace. “Star! Stop! We can walk for ourselves, you know! And please try not to read my mind. It makes me feel… I don’t know… Uncomfortable.” Cobalt said. 
The three of them walked in silence up the beach toward the huge castle, occasionally kicking a rock along their path. As they reached the top of the hill, they were greeted with an awe-inducing yet terrifying sight. The castle they saw was on fire. Well, parts of it were. The castle was at war with Darkwings. Soldiers and warriors from both sides clashed with spears, swords and other vicious killing tools. “Star, can you read their minds? What caused this?” Asked Sola.
Starseeker closed her eyes, then opened them with a confused look. “I… I can’t for some reason. What about you, Cobalt?” Cobalt copied Starseeker, and had the same results. “Sola, I don’t think it’s just you that can’t use your powers. I think it’s all of us.” 
Chapter 4
As Sola, Starseeker and Cobalt stared down at the fighting dragons, Sola wondered what to do next. We can’t go down there, we’d get killed. And we can’t go back to the beach and do nothing. The prophecy needs us. The dragons need us. We can’t just stand here. 
“Cobalt. Star. I have an idea. Let’s go see the Lightwings. They might have some answers for us. The reason we should go to the Lightwings in particular is that they’re usually the kindest and most benevolent tribe. They’re also the only tribe that possess the same powers as us, so they might understand why this is happening.” Said Sola. Then once again, the three set out across the frontiers of Palkenos. On the first night of their traveling, they found a small hut atop a low hill in an enormous moonlit field. A dragon opened the door and yelped in surprise when she saw the three of them. She peeked out of the door once again and donned a confused look. “Why aren’t you attacking me? Aren’t I still a traitor? Or are you waiting for backup? Oh! Or am I not a traitor anymore?” The small dragon walked carefully out of the door and went up to them. “Oh, you’re just dragonets! I thought you were part of the Great War!” She said. Sola’s eyes lit up. “The Great War? Wait… No, that’s not right… That means we’ve traveled 1,200 years into the past, not 1,100! Oh no… If this is the time of the Great War, we have to tread carefully. There could be assassins everywhere. By the way, what’s your name?” Sola asked the dragon. “My name is Eki.” She replied. Sola gasped and suddenly took off into the air. She looked back down at the small hut, then at Starseeker and Cobalt. “Eki was the name of my grandmother. She died of a snake bite only a year before I was born.” Sola said, smiling. The other two smiled back before catching a wind current and flying away. After a few hours of flying in silence  they came to the southeastern edge of the continent. In front of them were seven islands spanning a large section of the Bay of Light. Flying down to the entrance, they were greeted by two guards at the entrance to a long glass pathway. “Enter.” Said one of the guards. The three of them walked into the pathway and after a few minutes of silence, they walked into an enormous town with globes that looked like the moon hanging from the ceiling. A huge sign at the entrance read:
‘Welcome to the Daylight Isles!’
Starseeker was extremely excited to see the Daylight Isles had a Toff’s candy shop. Who wouldn’t be? Toff’s had every kind of treat a dragon’s little heart could desire; Candy geckos, Sausage scavengers, even the elusive Golden Gumdrop! She had to use every speck of will in her brain to refrain from shouting in delight and running over to pick out a Delightfully Delicious Chocolate Dove. After passing the Toff’s shop, she couldn’t hold herself together anymore. Starseeker, Cobalt and Sola gasped in unison at the beautiful sight ahead of them. An enormous Moon globe floated at the center of a humongous glass dome. A small entryway had been cut into glass, through which the three of them stepped. Inside was a small library where a few dragons sat. The odd thing about this place was that not only did Lightwings live here, but Darkwings, Bluewings and even the far-away Dreamwings. The Daylight Isles were for all dragons, whether young or old, short or tall, small or big. “Cobalt! Star! Let’s go, we need to find Queen Luminous. She’s the Queen of Lightwings.” Said Sola. So Cobalt and Starseeker followed Sola through the twisting pathways and wobbly streets. At last they came to a particularly big house, presumably belonging to Luminous. Sola walked up to the door and knocked four times. A servant came up to the door and opened it humbly, bowing to her as she passed through. “Queen Luminous, it appears you have a visitor of royal blood.” Said the servant. “As she has the royal mark on her arm.” He said, turning over her arm. Cobalt and Starseeker stared at her, dumbfounded. “You’re… You’re a royal!?”  They said together. “Yes. I am. But I didn’t want to tell you, because I knew you would treat me dif-” But before Sola could finish, Queen Luminous walked down her steps and stood before her. “Why are you here? I don’t remember seeing you before. Are you a pretender?” Said the Queen. “Well, Queen Luminous,” Said Sola. “We think we got stuck here when I enchanted a cocoa bean to-” But once again, Sola was interrupted by Luminous’ booming voice. “You’re an animus.” She said with an evil glint in her eye. “Guards. Lock her up and don’t let her out until she gives me her powers.” Said Luminous wickedly. “Wait! But Luminous, you don't understand!” Said Sola, and with that, they were thrown in a dungeon cell. “Star, Cobalt… I don’t know what to do…”
While Cobalt sat in the dim-lit dungeon room, he thought about how they would get out. No- IF they would get out. 
“Star? Any ideas?” He asked sadly. “No, not yet… But I'm working on it.” Starseeker replied. “Sola?” Cobalt asked her. “I’m here. No ideas yet either.” Sola said back. The odd thing about their cell was that there weren’t any guards at the entrance. And there was only one other dragon inside with them; She hadn’t talked at all since they had entered the cell. Cobalt bravely decided to talk to the old dragon. “Excuse me? Miss…?” Cobalt asked. The old dragon looked at him with a piercing stare. “Dreamer.”
Instantly Cobalt realized who this dragon was, and why their powers hadn’t been working since they had been stuck in this time period. “I understand now! You were imprisoned here by Queen Luminous after she found you wounded on the battlefield, so you used what little bit of your magic you’d saved on your scroll to keep us trapped here so we could save you!” As Cobalt uttered those last words, he turned to Starseeker and Sola. Their mouths were so wide with shock it was hard to believe he wasn’t dreaming. Dreamer smiled and stood up. “And now that you’re here, I can give you your powers back.” She reached into a tiny pouch and victoriously pulled out a tiny scrap of a scroll. She wrote this: 
‘Un-enchant the three dragons Cobalt, Sola and Starseeker so that they may have their powers of mind reading, prophecy and animus magic returned to them.’ As soon as she finished the last letter of ‘them’, Sola enchanted a rock to explode when she threw it at the wall. She did so, and quickly after, the four dragons flew out of the hole left by it. As they flew toward the middle of the ocean, Cobalt asked why they were going this far out to sea. “Dreamer, where are we going?” He asked. She looked down at him from high up in the sky and replied, “Dragonfire Island. The island where I was born.” And swooped towards an enormous mass of land shrouded in mist. A humongous tree, almost as tall as Dreamer’s palace, poked out of the center of the mist cloud. 
“Wow…” Said Sola, dazed by the sight. They landed on a small patch of grass and continued to walk through the dense foliage. As they entered a huge clearing, something wondrous lay ahead of them. The tree they saw from before was covered in glowing orbs with blue fireflies inside. A small statue of a dragon holding a pearl stood at the center of the clearing, strangely still and serene, while everywhere else in the clearing was positively buzzing with light and energy. “Welcome… To the Tree of Life!”
Part II:
The Truth
Chapter 5
Sola
As Starseeker and Cobalt stared up at the tree in awe, Sola sat next to Dreamer on a small wooden stump. “Dreamer, what did you mean when you said ‘The Tree of Life’? I thought that was just an ancient myth told to young dragonets.” Said Sola skeptically. She turned to look at Dreamer. Dreamer looked at her. “The Tree of Life is real. Since time immemorial, the Tree of Life, or the Bayukk Tree, has grown its roots throughout the continents. Whether under the sea or on land, its roots have grown deep beneath the soil, connecting out continents, Pyrrhia, Pantala and Palkenos, and keeping them safe from evil. Though recently, we have noticed an odd plant growing on Pantala… But we think it won’t do any harm for thousands of years.” Dreamer replied. Sola looked up at the branches high above them and then back at Dreamer. “So what’s this prophecy that Cobalt keeps mentioning?” She asked. Dreamer stared at her with knowing eyes. “You’re about to find out.” She said. And with those words, they heard a scream from across the clearing. It was Starseeker. She was watching Cobalt, who had fainted and fallen onto the ground softly. “What happened?” Said Sola. Starseeker looked up at her, worried. “Well, he touched that small pearl,” Said Starseker, pointing at the pearl in the stone dragon’s talons. “And then he just crumpled to the ground!” But as soon as Starseeker finished her sentence, Cobalt sat up straight and stared with cold, white eyes right at the stone dragon. Cobalt opened his mouth, and in a quiet, muffled voice, spoke aloud his prophecy:
“The Stars, The Sun and The Moon
The Darkness is coming soon
Hatred and Lies, Dragons will die,
Lest the Dream of Dragons can bloom.
The Stars, The Sun and The Moon.
The Dragon of the Deepest blue
Find him for an ancient truth
The Dragon of the Coldest white
Find him for an Orb of Light
The Dragon of the Brightest night
Find her to win the fight.
Three of Dragons to save the world
A tale of bravery untold
Pyrrhia, Pantala, Palkenos
The Dragons across the world need us.”
As Cobalt let out the final words of his prophecy, he collapsed once more on to the ground. Starseeker let out a little gasp. “That… Th- That was his prophecy. The one Cobalt keeps seeing. But what’s all that ‘Brightest night’ and ‘Coldest white’ stuff about? I think deepest blue is talking about the Bluewings. Or it could be talking about the rumored blue dragons living on Pyrrhia. Well… If Pyrrhia and Pantala are real.” She said quietly. 
Dreamer sat next to Starseeker. “There are other continents. Well, I know Pantala is real. Not so much Pyrrhia, although I dimly suspect it is. And the Brightest Night… Well, it’s only an old dragon legend, but every four thousand years, an ENORMOUS comet flies past our planet, shining like another moon in the sky. Another interesting thing… The Brightest night was only 5 years ago. So a dragon certainly could have hatched on that night.” Dreamer replied. “So,” Said Sola. “What now?” Dreamer stood up and patted her shoulder. “Well, I suppose we find this ‘Dragon of Deepest blue.’ Then, if he has answers for us, we figure out what to do from there.” She replied. “Also, who’s going to carry Cobalt?” Dreamer said. Starseeker groaned and picked up Cobalt. She hauled him up onto her shoulders. After about an hour of walking, the four of them came to a small dock with a canoe attached to the port. 
“Welcome aboard the Flameboat!” Said Dreamer as they gingerly stepped aboard the watercraft. Sola looked up at Dreamer. “May I ask why it’s called the ‘Flameboat’? That seems like an odd name for a canoe, no offense intended.” She asked. For a moment, Dreamer had a tremendously sad look in her eyes, but immediately wiped it off her face. “It’s named after my… friend. Flameater. I escaped Palkenos with him, and flew all the way to Pantala. When we made it, we stayed there for over sixty years. We had dragonets and even established a little bit of a kingdom. But, eventually, Flameater died. As you probably know, Sola, Animi can’t bring back the dead, so eventually, I headed back to Palkenos. But when I got there, it was a barren wasteland. The Four Kingdoms had been fighting when I'd left, but I had no idea it would get that bad. So with my animus powers, I rejuvenated the land once more, filling it with lakes, rivers and forests. I created my palace and the Darkwing Stronghold to keep the treasures and keepsakes of the land safe. But Queen Sapphire of the Bluewings was greedy, she wanted more. So she started another war, worse than anything before. And even worse…” But before Dreamer could finish her story, they hit a bump. Starseeker squeaked. The Four climbed out of the boat (Cobalt had woken up during the boat ride), and were left speechless. Ahead of them was the deepest hole they had ever seen in their lives. It was so deep, they thought they could see a tiny, tiny bit of light at the other end, as if the hole went to the other side of the earth. Dreamer stood up straight. “I know what the Darkness you have to face is. The Darkness,” Said Dreamer. “Is called The Eternal.”    
“What’s the Eternal?” Asked Cobalt. Dreamer looked up from the Pit and toward Cobalt, with an effect that made him feel uncomfortable. She walked over to him and sat on the rim of the boat. 
“The Eternal is a powerful spirit that corrupts dragons with an uncontrollable malice. It makes them live evil lives and do evil things. Its first recorded victim that I could find was corrupted by it nearly fifteen thousand years ago. But now it has returned, stronger than ever, to destroy our world and everybody within it. That’s what the ‘Pyrrhia, Pantala, Palkenos, the Dragons across the world need us’ part was about. And this,” Dreamer said, pointing to the Pit,
“Is the only way for us to get to the other continents. Well, other than flying or swimming, which, in my opinion, wouldn’t work very well. So what do you say? Shall we head off” Finished Dreamer. She held out a webbed hand to Sola, Cobalt and Starseeker. They all awkwardly shook hands with Dreamer, and set off to the other side of the planet. 
After a few hours, they came to an awkward split in the path ahead, which most likely lead to Pantala. But instead of heading onto that path, they continued straight for a few more hours, taking breaks in little holes in the side of the hole. After what seemed to be almost an entire day, they reached the other side of the Pit. They crawled out into the sunlit field, breathing heavily from all the flying. “We’re finally in Pyrrhia!” Shouted Cobalt. He had loved studying the dragons from Pyrrhia and Pantala, and now he could finally see them in real life! It was a dream come true. Once the four dragons had eaten, rested and relaxed their muscles, they once again set off for their new destination: The Ocean, where they could find The Dragon of the Deepest Blue.
Chapter 6
Sola flew silently along with her friends through the night. They had been flying a while, momentarily flying down onto the treetops to rest. But eventually, they reached the Ocean at the edge of the continent. “So, here we are. I think we should search along the beach for clues to the whereabouts of the so-called blue dragon.” Said Dreamer. So Cobalt, Sola and Starseeker scoured the beach for any clues. Eventually, after a few minutes of walking and searching, Sola found a small but odd thing inside a dimly moonlit cave. 
“Guys! Come look at this!” She called to the others. They came rushing to her a moment later. “What is it, Sola?” Asked Starseeker. “Look at this carving in the wall of this cave!” Replied Sola.
The four of them carefully studied the wall of the cave, seeing what Sola meant. A small carving lay upon it of a dragon holding a pearl in its talons. Beneath the carving was a tiny hole, just big enough for a dragon’s talon to fit through. “Dreamer… This looks like that statue back at the Bayukk Tree! And look at the hole… Maybe I should…” Said Sola before putting her talon inside it. As she did, a clicking noise sounded throughout the cave before the wall of the cave turned sideways, opening up a pathway for them. They entered it wearily, soon reaching a large, dome-shaped room. At the center of the room sat an old blue dragon meditating. Suddenly, like a flash of lightning, she opened her eyes, making Sola jump. “Ah,” Said the dragon. 
“I’ve been expecting you. And I presume you're here for the Truth."
“Our story begins many, many years ago, at a time so long ago it does not have a name. There was a dragon whose evil stretched across all three continents. This dragon’s only name was The Eternal, as no dragon could remember a time where his influence was not seen. But about forty thousand years ago, he was vanquished by two dragons, both with powers of prophecy, mind reading and animus magic, a Darkwing and a Lightwing. They took down The Eternal. But only a few thousand years ago, a strange and malicious force started to take root in dragons. An evil Beetlewing here, a corrupt Seawing queen there, but nothing serious. Until eight years ago, when once again, The Eternal struck the Queen of the Lightwings, the Queen of the Darkwings and the Queen of the Bluewings. There had never been three Queens fighting before, so Palkenos dissolved into chaos. But that’s just the start of our troubles. The Eternal’s influence across the world remained, and now it’s spreading its roots into Queens all across the three continents. The only ones that have not yet been corrupted are the Queen of the Sandwings, the Queen of the Dreamwings and the Queen of the Leafwings. The Dragon of Coldest white is who you must go to next, as you must receive the Orb of Light. Use that to find the Dragon of Brightest night in Pantala. She will tell you what your final act must be. And if anyone asks,” Said the dragon, “My name is Pearl. I have lived many thousands of years, protecting the continents and waiting here to tell you what you must know. Now go! You must protect the continents now, from the great evil that has plagued us for so long. My time has come, and now I will depart to the great Continent in the Sky. Goodbye, Sola, Starseeker, and Cobalt. Save… The…. Contine……” But Pearl never finished those last words, for the Dragon of Deepest Blue lay dead upon the cold stone floor of the cave.
When cobalt reached up toward his face, he realized he was crying. Dreamer sat down and looked at Cobalt. “These are the kind of dragons we're trying to save.” She said. “We need to get to the Frosted Plateau where the Icewings live. There we should find the dragon of Coldest White.” And Dreamer sat up with a determined expression. “We have to save everyone. We have to do this, or The Eternal will win.” So the four dragons walked out from the room and took off into the bright golden sky. They flew for a while before coming to a Skywing settlement.
The guards looked very confused as they landed at the gate. “Ummm… What are you?” Said one of them. The other guard hid behind the first. Cobalt spoke up; “We’re from a different continent. Palkenos. It’s across the ocean.”
At this the dragons looked much less terrified. “We’re here to save the continents. There’s an ancient evil that’s going to destroy our world unless we can find a way to stop it. We need as many allies as we can get if we’re going to have to battle it. That’s why we need to talk to the owner of this sett-” But before Cobalt could finish his sentence, he felt a sharp pain in his neck. “Wuh….” He said drowsily. 
“That,” 
Said a sly voice from ahead of them. “Would be me. You’re intruding in Skywing territory. Guards, throw them into my arena.” And at that, the guards grabbed them and once again dragged them into a prison.
Chapter 7
“Alright, so this is weird.” Said Sola. “I can’t use my animus magic. Dreamer, didn’t you give our powers back?” She asked. Dreamer looked up at her with a confused expression. “What? How is that possible? I gave your powers back, I swear! This must have something to do with The Eternal. Maybe… But that would mean… Oh no…” Dreamer said, her face now becoming pitying and sad.
“What? What is it, Dreamer?” Asked Starseeker in a worried tone.
Dreamer put her head in her hands. “Starseeker… The Eternal has taken our powers away. That means The Eternal has gotten a sudden boost of power. And… Well, The Eternal gets power from death and destruction.So that means there's been another battle. More death. We need to get out of here and go to the Frost Plateau soon.”
Sola opened one of her strange pouches that hung from her left shoulder. “I think it’s in here…” She said. Dreamer looked up from her grieving and walked over to Sola. “What do you mean? What’s in there?”
Just then, Sola shouted ‘Aha!’, and pulled out a small bit of scroll. “Oh!” said Dreamer, surprised.
“My Enchantment Scroll! You kept it! Sola, you genius!” There was only a tiny bit of space left to write on the scroll, so Sola wrote:
Enchant this bean, She wrote, brandishing the brown Cocoa Bean, To teleport the dragons Sola, Staseeker, Cobalt and Dreamer to the Frost Plateau in Pyrrhia. And as she finished writing this spell, the four dragons disappeared, leaving three very confused guards and one angry Skywing queen behind them.
Starseeker felt dizzy as she went from the warm mountain air of the Skywing Camp to the freezing temperature of the Frost Plateau.
As they climbed higher and higher up toward the peak of a tall mountain, they found a small cave to take shelter in. Once they entered, they started a fire to warm their shivering scales.
“Dreamer,” Said Starseeker.
“What if we don’t find The Eternal? What if everyone dies?”
At this, the whole room fell silent. Dreamer still sat on a stone just big enough so that she wouldn’t fall off, looking down at her talons. She studied them carefully as if they had just appeared there, not been there for her whole life. “Well… Then I suppose we’ll have to try our best.” She said quietly. Her tone of voice was sad, as if there was something she wasn’t telling them.
They continued up the mountain, only stopping momentarily to warm herself up. Interestingly, the only dragon species on Palkenos with fire was the Lightwings, which meant Sola was very useful to have on the climb. No, Thought Starseeker. Don’t think of dragons as tools to be used. All dragons are equal. Really, queens only exist to help keep the balance of the law in the kingdom. They aren’t necessarily better than other dragons, it’s just that they help with governing. Her thoughts trailed off as they reached the midsection of the climb. Now that they were at this height, they could fly much more easily. So they swept up into the air, gliding off to the summit of the Plateau. Eventually they came to the peak, where an oddly shaped hole lay at the top. “Hmm…” Said Dreamer.
“How about one of us goes down there to check if it’s safe?” Said Cobalt. Sola turned to look at the rest of them. “I’ll do it.”
So they lowered Sola gently down into it with a rope, and soon she reached the floor. She gasped at what she saw. “What? What is it, Sola?” Asked Starseeker.
“Guys… Come and see this.” Said Sola. 
So they climbed down into the hole.
And they gasped as well.
Ahead of these four dragons lay an enormous palace buried deep within the mountain; decorated with enormous glowing orbs floating at the top of the cavern. Glowing orbs… Thought Starseeker wonderingly. 
“Guys,” She said. “I think… I think those are the Orbs of Light.”
All three of the other dragons stared at the Globes of Light above them, but Cobalt was more interested in the enormous palace ahead. How did that even get there? Animus magic? 
But the answer was coming straight toward him: A very old dragon, so old it looked like he had lived for millenia. He had a small cane he used to walk better, decorated with a strangely shaped leaf on it. It was the first thing his curious mind was drawn to when he looked at it. The leaf was almost like a small, red-colored birch leaf. Oddly, it was so realistic he almost couldn’t believe it wasn't a real leaf. As he stared at it, the old dragon chuckled. “I see you like to pay attention to detail.” He said. “I’m Frost. The Frost Plateau, you may have noticed, is actually named after me. Follow me and I’ll explain some things.”
So Frost led them inside the palace. He sat them down in front of a large fireplace in the central room.
“Our story begins with an animus dragon. He lived in a time so far back it has never been told of in any legend of dragons anywhere. He lived at the beginning of time. In the beginning, there were two beings locked in cosmic combat. 
A dragon of Peace, Love and Prosperity. This dragon was known only as The Ethereal. 
And a dragon of Death, Destruction and Evil. This dragon was known only as the Eternal. As they fought, a small thing emerged from the shadows. Hope. It crept through The Ethereal, and she stopped fighting. She created our universe, planet and continents, and left The Eternal stranded in the void. But sometime around eighty thousand years ago, The Eternal broke free of the void. Now he wreaks havoc across the world, as it is all he has ever known. We must defeat him at all costs, and the only way to do that is to find Delphi, The Dragon of Brightest night. 	You will find her in the depths of Pantala’s Poison Jungle, and she will give you a way to defeat The Eternal for good. But before you go, I'm sure you’re tired. You should get some rest before you leave. I’ll wake you at dawn.”
Frost quietly walked up to the bed Sola was resting in. “Sola.” She said quietly. “Wake up. It’s already half past eight.” When Sola was about to open her eyes, she thought she would awake to see Lugh standing over her, laughing. Sola would shush her, they would go outside and play, and have breakfast. But when she did open them, she remembered: her mother hadn’t even been born yet.
She remembered all the terrible, amazing and frightening things she’d seen in the last few days.
Then it crossed her mind.
What if I don’t go home?
What if I'm stuck here… Forever?
But Sola crawled out of her self-pity and back into reality. She sat up and leapt off the bed. “Are the others awake yet?” Said Sola quietly.
“No, not yet.” Replied Frost. And so Sola and Frost woke Cobalt, Starseeker and Dreamer. They hurriedly thanked Frost and ate some cold mice, then scurried out the door. But before they left, Frost shouted: “Wait! I have a gift for you four!” And she gently tugged a small, brightly glowing orb from the center of the dome at the top of the palace. Before, it was gently floating there, but she plucked it out of its mystical orbit around the dome.
“Here. This is the Moonlight Orb. On the path to the Dragon of Brightest Night, you will encounter a very powerful evil. Not quite so powerful as The Eternal, but it will still prove an enormous challenge. This globe will protect you, but to fight it, you must find that out in your own way. Now, heroes, complete your goal! Protect our world!” But those last words were faint as the four flew up out of the cavern and back through the hole. The change in temperature was once again dizzying, but Sola made sure not to fall. They flew in silence towards the Pit once more, Passing beautiful forests and dragons along the way. Some stopped and stared, and some smiled and waved. Others decided to fly along with them for a while, but only one stayed. He was a small baby dragonet with a big smile and a bigger heart. He was a sort of rainbow color, as he could change the color of his scales. Sola laughed as he clung to her. And started talking to him. “What’s your name?” She asked, laughing. “I’m Rainbow.” He replied. Sola laughed again. “Yes, I can see that.” And giggled. He giggled with her. But then she realized something: This dragonet probably had a family. He couldn’t stay with her. “Do you have a family, little guy?” She asked him. “No. It’s just Rainbow and Mr. Flop.” He said, pointing to his stuffed Bunny. “Well,” Said Sola. “Maybe you can stay with us! And Mr. Flop too, of course. We can’t forget Mr. Flop.” And they both broke down into laughter. Cobalt glanced over at them and smiled. “Looks like we’ve made a new friend! Five dragons saving the day… That’s better than four!” He laughed. And so the five dragons to save the day flew off into the sunset. But their journey is far from over.
Part III:
The Demon's Plunge
Chapter 8
“Urgggh, I’m soooooo hungryyyyy! Solaaaa!” Said Rainbow in her ear. “Yes, Rainbow, I am too. But as you can see, we’re in an enormous endless pitch-black tunnel, and we’re almost to Panatala. So if you’re tired, just get on my back and I'll give you a ride if you want.” So Rainbow climbed onto her back and fell asleep against her cool scales. Sola looked at Rainbow, with his soft wings and warm scales. She smiled at him, and he smiled back. I have a new family now. I have people I love, and need to protect. Cobalt is like a brother to me. I can tell he likes Starseeker, but honestly, I don’t know if he knows yet. Sola watched Starseeker glance back at Cobalt. Starseeker saw Sola looking at her, and quickly blushed and looked away. Rainbow giggled. He was such a fun, kind, sweet dragonet. He must have had really good parents. It’s so sad they’re gone. I would have liked to meet them. A tear came to Sola’s eye, but she brushed it away before anyone could see it. It’ll be alright. I’ll stay with him. Even after this is all over. I’ll be like his… Mother, Sister, whatever. I’ll care for him.
Just then, Dreamer shouted back at them. “Pantala is just up ahead! We’re almost there! Just a few more minutes of flying!”
“Hear that?” Said Sola. “We’re almost to Pantala! I hear it’s the biggest, most beautiful continent of all!” And all Rainbow replied with a small ‘Mmmh.’ Noise because his head was buried in her warm scarf.
They soon reached Pantala, immediately lying on the ground in exhaustion. But Rainbow scampered off to find some fruit to fill his empty stomach. As Starseeker caught up with him, he picked a small, blue berry from a bush. He held it up to her. “Hmmm…” She said. She picked it up, tossing it into her snout. “Oh, wow! That’s delicious!” So Starseeker called to the others, and they harvested hundreds of them. Rainbow scarfed them down like they were the only food he’d had for months (Although they only left Pyrrhia 6 hours ago.) And they made sure to bring a lot of berries with them. So they headed east, towards where Frost said they should go. Towards the Dragon of Brightest Night.
Cobalt was extremely tired from traveling the barren savannas of Pantala. “Pantala is the biggest continent.” Dreamer had said. Before now, he hadn’t really believed her, but now he saw it was completely true. The place they were going, though, was much crazier. A huge Jungle lay before them, strange vines and creeping ivy growing all throughout it. Some of the trees looked tens of thousands of years old, so tall it was hard to see the top. Not even close to as impressive as The Bayukk Tree, but still extremely tall. They entered the dense Jungle, leaving the grassy fields behind them. All the way to the Dragon of Brightest Night, all five of them felt uneasy. It was like when you fall in a dream, then suddenly wake up sweating. They continued through the undergrowth, passing deadly plants and vicious snakes on the way. Eventually, they came to a small cottage in the jungle. It was made of an odd red wood and plain stone walls. 
Dreamer knocked on the door. Nobody answered. She opened it wearily, her jaw dropping at what was inside. A fat, horrible vine slithered through the cracks in the walls, spilling out from within a hole in the floor. There was a ladder, so they climbed down into the slim hole. They reached the bottom, and Sola set Rainbow down onto the floor of the cave, guarding him fiercely. “You three go on. I’ll stay here and protect Rainbow.” She said. So Cobalt, Starseeker and Dreamer continued through the twisting, winding passages, following the vine to the very end. An enormous cavern gaped beneath them at the end of a huge stone corridor. So they flew gently down and came to a strange Abyss. There was another passage, presumably leading to another place in Pantala. But they headed farther down into the Abyss, the Moonlight Orb coming in handy. After almost an hour of descending farther down, they found a small opening to a huge room. In the center, the vine seemed to explode out of a spot in the ground. They walked up to it and tried to pull it out of the ground. But a rumbling noise sounded from beneath them and an enormous snake-like vine burst forth out of the ground. It had a glowing eye with a void-like pupil that stared down at them. A strange crackling noise came from it, and they realized it was laughing.
Dreamer was panicking. How do we escape? Can we just go back the way we came? She didn’t know what to do. She knew Cobalt and Starseeker probably thought she would know how to get out of this, but she was stumped. The vine suddenly and maliciously spoke. “You tttthree are ssssso gullible. You’ll ffffollow any lllleadssss you get. It wasssss sssssso obviousssss that thissss wassssss a trap. But you fell right into it like fliessss!” It said, cackling in its terrifying way. “Ssssso, what should I do witttth you firsssst? I could sssssqueeze you until you pop? Ooooh, I could melt you with my burning-hot acid! No, no, I could make you fight to the death! Ssssso many choicessss!” It cackled again. It grew two odd, small vines from its side and clapped them together. But what it didn’t realize was that Sola was carefully creeping up his back. Dreamer glanced up at her but quickly looked back at the Vine-thing. If she looked at Sola, it would notice. They’d have no chance of escape. The Vine-thing continued to drone on about ways it could kill them, but Sola soon reached its head. She breathed in with all her strength, then released an insane streak of fire right onto its eye. It screamed with pain, writhing on the floor. The four of them rushed out and flew quickly up from the Abyss. Sola grabbed Rainbow before he could say anything, and they flew like rockets out of the hole. They burst into the air, with the Vine-thing close behind. But as it felt the sun, it screeched and seemed to kind of… disintegrate. Dreamer flew down to examine the remains, and found an odd thing inside of the eye. It seemed to be a kind of black token. She wondered what it could be for, but wondered no longer, because they continued deeper into the Jungle. They soon came to the thickest part of it, right at the center of the Jungle. A clearing was spread before them, strangely flat. There was only grass, no other plants. At the middle of the clearing was a strange drawing of an eye. There was no pupil at the center of the eye. Dreamer wonderingly pulled out the token and placed it on the eye. A ‘Click!’ noise sounded, before the eye was lifted out of its place in the ground, pushing up the ground and revealing a kind of elevator. Of course, they were dragons, and had no idea what this contraption was. But they entered it.
And they were swept, once again, beneath the Earth.
Chapter 9
The strange earthen elevator flew down into the depths of the planet, and passed many crevices with crystals, mushrooms and rocks galore. Sola breathed out a small burst of fire to warm then, as it was very cold beneath the ground. “This is beautiful…” She said quietly as they arrived at their destination. It was a cavern so huge it almost looked like there was a whole other continent down here. It was like an ocean of crystals, glowing and bathing them in silver light. They were blue, green, even red. It was like staring at the Sun. It really hurt your eyes, but once you saw it, you just couldn’t look away. The elevator sunk into the ground, seeming to sigh with relief from the journey down. It kind of sagged a little bit, but strangely, it didn’t fall apart. “How odd.” Said Dreamer. But she turned towards the path ahead. But instead of going forward, Sola looked up at the ceiling of the Crystal Cavern.
“Dreamer! Cobalt! Starseeker! Look at the ceiling of the Cavern!”
Dreamer saw what she saw, and a look of wonder crossed her face. 
Above them was another prophecy.
Dreamer recited it:
“When dragons three
Go deep beneath
The Demons’ Plunge
Will swallow thee
The Brightest Night
Will end the fight
But will it stop
The evil right
The Eternal foe
After the final blow
Will be revived
It will survive.
so many years from now,
You must fight it in the final round.
And then, and only then, the game
Will End.
Starseeker felt chills along her scales. The final words of the prophecy kept echoing in her head. So… Even when we defeat The Eternal, he’ll just come back? She thought. The crystals above her were very distracting, it seemed that no matter where she looked a gleaming crystal was stuffed right up into her face. It was extremely ironic that the dragon of Brightest Night lived inside such a bright cave. But nevertheless, they continued deeper and farther down into the cave system. Every cave seemed brighter than the last, until they came to a fairly small room, only about two times Starseeker’s height. Though not very tall, it was extremely long. The whole room was almost devoid of the crystals that lay in every room before them, strangely dark with almost no light. A torch was placed on the ground beside Sola, so she lit it on fire and held it up. 
The whole room instantly lit up.
Starseeker and Cobalt investigated the far northern edge of the room, while Dreamer took west and Sola took east. They searched for a long time, finding nothing. But right after they were about to leave, something caught Starseekers’ eye. 
A small glint of silver, barely even noticeable.
It was a lever.
“Dreamer! Look at this!” Said Starseeker. Dreamer walked over and peered over her shoulder. She gently pushed her to the side and pulled it.
A large ‘Creeeaaak’ sounded, and the middle of the floor seemed to very slowly drop away, leaving another hole. “Shall we?” Said Cobalt. They all four nodded and jumped down into it.
Starseeker glided down into the hole as it slowly got larger. Eventually, she saw a bright, wispy light coming from the other end of the hole.
She was very confused.
How can there be light down here?
And in an instant, she burst out of the other end.
It was a sight to behold.
On the other end of the hole
Lay an entire city
Shrouded in clouds.
Cobalt was stunned at the cloudy world below them.
How can that be here!? There’s no continent with places like this!
Unless… Unless we’re not on a continent?
Could this be the center of the planet?
He swooped down to land on a strange floating island. It seemed to be suspended in the air, with a bridge attaching to another. And that island led to another, and so on. At the end of this long and tangled stretch of islands was an enormous island floating in the center of the tangle. On top of it was a city of the sky, some houses floating and draped with luxurious crystals and jewels.
Dreamer walked up beside him and stepped lightly onto the wooden bridge. It creaked slightly, but didn’t break. So the five dragons continued on towards the city in the sky.
Rainbow was very sleepy, so when they arrived in the strangely deserted city, he slumped down onto the grassy earth. Sola laughed and laid next to him, resting.But Cobalt, Dreamer and Starseeker investigated the empty city.
First, they came to an oddly shaped statue with a fountain beneath it. It looked like it was modeled after a dragon holding up a crystal triumphantly. She had a kind expression on her face, like she was happy and content with her life. Her talons were three, not like any other dragons’ talons Cobalt had seen before…
It seemed there were other tribes here.
He looked at the crystal she held up, and it was not made of stone, but of real crystal. He flew up gently to take it, pulling it lightly to release it from the statues’ grasp. Then Cobalt glided back down to Dreamer and set it upon the ground.
It had an odd purplish glow, so powerful yet subtly it made him want to close his eyes. It was the strangest thing he had ever seen.
“Cobalt, Starseeker, you stay here and investigate the top of the island. I’m going to scour the edge and bottom of the island, to see if I can find anything there.” Said Dreamer. She hugged them and headed off toward the eastern edge of the island. Meanwhile, Cobalt and Starseeker headed up farther toward the top of it. There was a palace at the top, huge and glittering in the sunlight.
Sunlight.
Cobalt was confused for a second. He realized:
How is there sunlight down here?
He expected to find some answer, but nothing. It just seemed to be… There. He decided not to ponder it any more, so he continued toward the palace. Starseeker was staring at him, but looked away when he glanced at her. He realized he was blushing. Why is my face doing that? What’s going on with me?
But, interrupting his trail of thought, they arrived at the top of the island. They knocked on the door of the palace.
No answer.
They decided to enter, the creaking noise of the doors very unnerving.
But inside was a dragon. A normal, average dragon.
Except for one thing.
Inside his skull; Through his eye sockets, was a slithering vine.
Just like the Vine-Thing.
Chapter 10
Starseeker felt a scream bubbling up inside herself.
I thought– Didn’t we kill it!? 
I guess not. I guess we’re just going to have to destroy it ag- I don’t think so.
Starseeker yelped.
Who’s there!? How can you hear my thoughts!?
The voice in her head cackled maniacally.
You really don’t know who I am? You’ve been trying to stop me all along on this petty journey you’re making. It will all end in death. Why not just give in and let me take you?
You would be free.
No more prophecies to fulfill.
No more evil.
Just silence…
NO! You’re worse than I thought! I’ll defeat you, Eternal, even if it takes a million years!
Good luck with that. Hah!
Just like that, the voice faded away.
I guess that really was The Eternal…
I should tell Cobalt.
Starseeker turned to meet his eyes, and got the impression he had spoken to The Eternal as well. 
“So, you spoke to him?” Cobalt asked. Starseeker nodded. “Well… Let’s keep exploring.” She replied. Cobalt nodded too.
Starseeker gently crept up to the Vine-thing between the dragons’ eyes.
A strange, orb shaped thing bulged out from its side. 
She realized it was a closed eye.
Except it wasn’t closed any more.
It was open, and staring right at her.
A few minutes after Starseeker, Cobalt and Dreamer had left to explore the island, Sola heard a rumbling coming from the palace at the top. Starseeker and Cobalt burst out of the front door, head first, and Dreamer flew swiftly along with them. Cobalt quickly grabbed Sola by the arm before she could even ask what was happening, just as a roar sounded from the palace. 
The whole island shook. An enormous mass of vines, thousands of times bigger than the Vine-thing, gurgled up from beneath the clouds. It clumped together and formed one huge, city-sized behemoth. A few of the vines receded and a giant eye emerged. “That’s…” Whispered Cobalt. “That’s the Vine-thing’s eye…”
But before they had time to wonder about that, Starseeker grabbed both Sola and Cobalt and flew up towards the entrance to the Crystal Caves. Dreamer was flying just ahead of them, and she disappeared into the abyss above them.
Sola looked down.
The Vine-thing was right behind them.
Sola sped up, the terror of the Vine-thing driving her. She saw Rainbow on her shoulder, half-asleep, and held him tight. I won’t let that thing hurt you. I can’t. 
A few seconds later, they burst out into the glittering caves. They ran towards the exit, past the writing on the ceiling, the beautiful crystals, finally coming within a few meters of the exit. They seemed to explode out into the air when they reached the top, and the Vine-thing was right behind them.	It bubbled up from the shaft like an erupting volcano. Millions of vines burst every way, but quickly rearranged into the Vine-things’ shape again. But this time it was even bigger. ALL the vines had come together to form one extremely massive monster, so big you almost couldn’t see the top of it. “It’s huge…” Said Rainbow. The Vine-thing now had a visible mouth, and let out a roar of laughter. “You frrrreed me! Thhhhank you! But obviously, I don’t really care. I’m just going to kill you now.” It said. Sola leapt up and grabbed Cobalt, Dreamer and Starseeker. “We have to go. Fast.”
Starseeker nodded and they all flew through the air at breakneck speed. The Vine-thing roared like a steam engine when it saw they had left, and chased them furiously. But it lost sight of them when they hid beneath the undergrowth. They hid from a monster that could kill them all with a single strike. 
Cobalt slunk through the wet Jungle, momentarily passing frogs or other small animals. This is horrifying. If the Vine-thing found us, it would kill us immediately. Dreamer gasped. Cobalt tried to look over, but he couldn’t see through all the foliage. “There’s a… house?” She whispered. “It’s in the middle of a strange ditch. If I just…” Dreamer gently slid into it, went up to the door of the house, and knocked lightly. “Hello? Is there anybody there?” Dreamer asked. Strange footsteps came from within the house, and a few seconds later, a very old dragon opened the door. His eyes went wide when he saw them, and he quickly pulled them inside. “Who are you?” He said quickly and horsley, as if he had a cold. He also looked very worried. “I’m Cobalt, this is Starseeker, this is Sola, this is Dreamer, and that little dragonet is Rainbow.” Said Cobalt. “And we’re the ones who are supposed to defeat The Eternal.” Just then, Rainbow squeaked and ran up to the elderly dragon. “Are you the Dragon of Lightest fight?” He said in a loud, surprised voice. The old dragon laughed and sat down to meet the little dragon’s line of sight. “No, but we’re friends. I’m Abyss, one of the only Voidwings left. We were once one of the only types of dragons on this planet, along with the Lightwings. The only other Voidwing left is Paragon. And he…” Abyss’s voice trailed off, and his eyes clouded over. He stared at Rainbow, but suddenly jerked upright. “Okay. I need to tell you what happened. Follow me.” And then he walked towards a huge drawer with many strange items inside. There was one that was particularly strange. It was a small necklace studded with strange gems. That necklace plays a larger role in the story of The Eternal, but it won’t be mentioned much in this one. “Here we are!” Said Abyss suddenly. He pulled out a small key and twirled around towards a door at the far northern edge of the room. He unlocked it, and let it swing open. They followed him down a dark staircase to a well-lit room. It was quite small, but they still had enough room to sit around comfortably. There was another drawer here. Abyss opened it and pulled out another object. A crystal globe, the most brilliant and bright thing any of them had ever seen. It seemed to have millions of facets, making it shine like the sun. Though it was very small, only about the length of a dragons’ talon. He set it on the floor, and an image sprang up from in, projected in the air. Cobalt stared at it. The image was like a tapestry, and it was of two types of dragons, made of light and darkness, fighting across a grand battlefield. “I was one of those dragons.” Said Abyss, pointing to a general riding a chariot in front of many other dragons, presumably leading them. “This war was called The War of Eclipse. The Lightwings ended up winning, and I was captured and thrown into jail. But little did they know, I had picked up a bit of an exploding Bomberry on the way there. So I threw it at the wall of my prison cell and flew away. I ended up coming to a small island off the coast of the Lightwings’ empire. ‘Perfect.’ I said to myself. You may be wondering why I was relieved to find a spot like this.” All four of them nodded their heads. “It was because of my powers. Voidwings like the dark, so we can tunnel underground with special extensions under our claws. I tunneled down, down, down. First I came to Pyrrhia, but the dragons there chased me out. So then I thought, well, maybe there are other continents! So I dug again, but at a certain point, I turned right, and I made it to Pantala. It was perfect, so I found this part of the Jungle and settled down here.” Abyss sighed and leaned back in her rocking chair. “It feels good to finally tell that story.” Cobalt started to clap, and then everyone else joined in. Dreamer sat up and hugged Abyss. “I know it’s not conventional to hug another dragon without permission, but I feel like you really need one right now.” And then Abyss hugged Dreamer and smiled warmly. “But now, to deal with your monster problem.” Said Abyss quickly, walking up the steps. “This should help with that.” He said, pulling out yet another thing from his drawer upstairs. It was a vial full of an odd green liquid. “This is the venom from an Abyssal Crocus. It can kill in mere seconds. It should down the Vine-thing.” She handed it to Dreamer as they walked out, and Abyss waved until they were out of sight.
Chapter 11
Starseeker crawled along underneath the vines and trees, carefully watching the giant Vine-thing above her. Sola accidentally bumped into her, and she almost fell. But Sola grabbed her, and pulled her back onto her talons. “You okay?” Asked Sola. “Yeah. Thanks for catching me.” Starseeker smiled back at her. “Alright, let’s keep going.” She said. They continued toward the huge, looming monster above them. They eventually reached the base of the Vine-thing, and Dreamer poured a few drops of the strange liquid onto it. It screeched out in pain, falling like a felled Oak tree. It writhed on the ground, withering away. After a few minutes, it simply turned to dust. Dreamer sighed and sat on the ground. “Alright. We can finally proceed to our final stop in the Jungle: The Home of Delphi.” And Dreamer cleared away a small patch of vines that were covering the ground in front of her. Underneath them was a button made of stone. She pushed it, and a rumbling noise came from the ground. Cobalt toppled over, and so did Starseeker. The rumbling grew stronger, and a piece of stone emerged from the ground, coming farther and farther up, until a grand Temple lay before them: The Temple of Delphi. Starseeker crept up to the steps of the temple, drawing ever closer to the entrance of the Temple. Cobalt followed her, Beside Dreamer and Sola. Starseeker peered into the Temple. It was bright from the sun shining through the top of the temple, which had a large hole at the top. And in the center of the Temple was a throne. And sitting on the throne was… A scavenger. “Wait- What? Don’t tell me… IS THAT THE DRAG- Oh, well, uh, SCAVENGER OF BRIGHTEST NIGHT? SERIOUSLY!?” Shouted Sola in a slightly disgusted voice. Starseeker just stared at it, wide-eyed. … A scavenger? Is that all? Not some grand, powerful Lightwing? But I thought this would save us! Was this really all for nothing? Starseeker slowly crumpled to the ground. “We’re never going to defeat The Eternal now. We’re doomed. We failed everyone.” Just as soon as Starseeker finished, she heard a happy voice. “Oh wow! I haven’t had visitors in, what, ten thousand years? Hellooo! What are your names?” Said the voice. Starseeker looked up. The scavenger was talking. “Oh, I bet you’re confused about how I can talk. Well, you see…” Said the Scavenger gleefully. Except now it wasn’t a scavenger. It was a Bright white dragon with golden flecks all over it.
Rainbow was peering inside of Cobalts mouth. “Hrmmmm… Why’s your mouf- mouf? Mout? Why’s your mout hangin’ open like that, Cobalt? It looks like a cavern!” Chuckled Rainbow. Meanwhile, The Dragon of Brightest Night was beaming at them. In two senses of the word. Firstly, it was ‘Beaming at them’ as in it was smiling happily. Secondly, it was ‘Beaming at them’ as in it was literally GLOWING LIKE THE SUN. Cobalts’ eyes hurt when he looked at the White and Gold dragon ‘Beaming at him’. But then, as if he had noticed his gleam, Delphi began to become less bright, until he simply emitted a faint glow. “So… I’m a Shapeshifter! Yeah, I bet it’s surprising. But I mean… You can all do amazing things too! Likeeee… Starseeker, you can read minds! And Sola, you’re an animus! And let’s not forget Cobalt! The power of prophecy! Tell me THAT’S not awesome.” And when he’d finished, he transformed into an alligator. A bird. A Koi fish. A heron. A blue frog. A Scavenger again. And finally, back into a dragon. “So, Delphi, can you help us to defeat the Eternal?” Said Starseeker to Delphi. She had been inching closer to him, and becoming less afraid of him. “Oh! Yes, of course. We’ll need to go beneath the temple for the map to Demon’s Plunge.” He reached over to click a, might I add, VERY well-hidden brick-shaped button in the wall of the Temple. The center of the temple made a ‘Click!’ noise and lowered them, slowly, down to the under-Temple. There were scrolls galore and pedestals with ancient objects on them. A few were: A cylindrical object with green glowing lines. It gave whoever touched it the power to read minds, like the Nightwings. And a golden, extremely bright orb. It was called the Sunglobe. Its creator was a Lightwing named Astral, who made it for his children, Sunlight, Goldheart, and little Flameburst, who were all scared of the dark. “Here it is!” Shouted Delphi excitedly. “The map of our world! On the back is a detailed map of Palkenos, and on the front is a map of every continent!” He paused to trace his finger from somewhere to somewhere else. “From where we are now, it should take you around a week and a half to get to Demon’s Plunge. But one more thing before you go. I have a gift for each of you. Starseeker, here is a ring meant to dim your mindreading if you ever get overwhelmed. Cobalt, this bracelet can make it so that, when you have a prophecy, it doesn’t give you pain or headaches. And finally, Sola. To you I gift this Amulet, which will make wondrous things happen. I cannot tell you what it does, but know this: Put it on when your final hour has arrived.”
Sola woke up, yawned, and then realized she had no idea where she was. It was completely pitch-black, and the floor felt like iron. She called out to see if anybody was there. Why hello there! What a delightful surprise! Sola, what ARE you doing here? The Eternal said. She realized at once that she was dreaming. You’re the Eternal, right? Correct. Why am I here? I brought you, of course. Why? I want to convince you to joi- No. And don’t ask me again. All right. Fine. He snapped his fingers, and she awoke with a start, and bonked her head on the underside of the top bunk. She was lying in bed, Starseeker above her. Because of the bonk, Cobalt woke up, as well as Starseeker. “What in the-  What happened, Sola?” Cried Cobalt. Sola was breathing hard, but managed to reply, “The Eternal. He… He was in my dream. He asked me to join him. I said no.” She got up as Cobalt and Starseeker fell back asleep. Sola kept having doubts if they could actually, legitimately do this. If they could destroy the Eternal. Every new foe they faced, the pit in her stomach grew deeper. Can we really do this? What if we fail? She sighed and left the room. As soon as she did, she bumped into Delphi, and he dropped something he was carrying. It looked like a... scroll? But it was colored black, pitch black, not a trace of white, or grey, or tan. but he picked it up, fast as lightning, and stuffed it into a pouch he had along his waist. "What was that?" Asked Sola skeptically. "Nothing," Delphi quickly replied. "You should go back to bed." But Sola quickly snatched the Scroll from his pouch. He watched helplessly as she unrolled it. Inside were three symbols: one shaped like an eye, one shaped like a triangle, and one shaped like a... sideways peanut? But hollowed out. One of the tips of the scroll was shaped like an hourglass. she pointed it at Delphi and tapped the symbols a few times. a small bean of light shone out of the hourglass and on to Delphi. He suddenly went as still as a tree, and uttered in a murky tone, "I intend to use this scroll to figure out what Dreamer is planning, as you have just used it on me." Then he collapsed on the floor and sat up immediately. "Goodness. I've never had it used on me. What a strange feeling." He said, as Sola stared at him. She walked forward a step and said, "Are you..." Delphi looked up at her and cried out in laughter. "You think I'M an ANIMUS!? BWAHAHAHAHAHA!! NOT IN A BILLION YEARS, LITTLE DRAGONET! I simply found that on Pyrrhia! I wish!" He kept laughing and wiping his eyes for a few moments, but he eventually calmed down. But something else Sola was confused about... "What do mean, what Dreamer was planning? She's planning to help us take down the Eternal." Delphi stood up and brushing his wings with his talons. "Sola... I don't think you get cues like I do. I know when a dragon is planning something. When you're over a hundred years old, you start to realize much more. So, Sola. Do you want to figure this out or not?"
Chapter 12
Starseeker awoke once again when she heard the door to their cave creak open. "Hello?" She whispered. She saw Sola and Delphi tiptalon into the cave. "What are you do-" She said in surprise, but was shushed by Delphi. So she woke up Cobalt, and Delphi explained everything to them. "So I need to figure out what she's planning." Delphi finished, softly tapping his talons together. They then crept toward Dreamers bed and used the scroll on her. She sat straight up. "I plan to bring these dragons to the Eternal, and sacrifice them in the hopes of reviving my dead lover, Flameater the Lightwing, son of Queen Empyrean." Then she collapsed back onto the bed. "Goodness," Whispered Delphi. "I had no idea it was that serious. We ought to leave right now, before she awakes." So the four of them crept out of the room, then ran for their lives. They heard roaring behind them, and when they looked back, Dreamer was charging at them with determination in her eyes. A blast of fire hit Delphi's wing just when they had gotten into the sky outside the temple, knocking him to the ground. "GO!," He shouted at them, "IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT HAPPENS TO ME, BUT YOU FOUR ARE MUCH MORE IMPORTANT! SAVE YOURSELVES!" Starseeker looked back at him as they flew off. "Shouldn't we have saved him?" She said to the others. But they were both caught up with their own thoughts. Sola was thinking 'How could this have happened? Dreamer was so kind to us, and never showed a shred of deceit!' Whilst Cobalt was thinking 'What a horrible thing to do. Why would she want to sacrifice us? Doesn't she know that The Eternal is an evil monster!?' Starseeker flew closer to Cobalt and comforted him. "I don't know why Dreamer would do that, but if we stick together, we can do this. We can defeat The Eternal." Starseeker then realized she was holding his talons in hers. "Whoops." She said, quickly letting them go. She blushed and flew a bit farther away from him. Sola giggled at her. She turned away. Rainbow was hanging by his tail on Sola's neck. Sola looked down at the ground. "There's the hole! Let's go, you two!" And she dived headfirst into it. Starseeker followed, and Cobalt crawled in after them. They took the left path, to go to Pyrrhia. The hole widened and they flew as fast as their wings would carry them. Every once in a while, they rested, And after a few days, they came to the other end. There were fruit trees right beside the exit, and they all hungrily ate. "I'm so tired!" Exclaimed Rainbow, and fell asleep, snoring. So all of them found a suitable forest to sleep and hide in, and fell asleep under the dappling light of the sun,
Category:Fanfictions
Category:Fanfictions (Incomplete)
Category:Fanfictions (Fanon)