The next morning breakfast was interrupted by the tall man who had warned them of the Wind Tribe hunting Dreth. He wore the same angry expression he had then. Obsi glanced at Leilani, who was looking at Ano.
"What is it, Kekoa?" Ano asked.
"The Fire Tribe approaches. I believe they are also hunting Dreth."
Ano sighed and rose. "Well then, let us go meet them."
Kekoa, Leilani, Obsi and Maiara followed Ano to the beach. Obsi and Leilani had hidden the egg Scorpa gave to Obsi behind some rocks and Obsi tried not to glance at the spot. Ano waded into the water and motioned for the Fire Tribe to come closer. He made gestures with his hands that Obsi contextually discerned meant that he wanted to talk and the talk would be peaceful. A man whom Obsi guessed was the Fire Tribe Chief walked through the water up to where Ano stood. Maiara walked into the water and stood behind Ano. Leilani motioned for Obsi to follow and they stood on either side of Maiara.
"The creature is peaceful," Ano said to the Fire leader.
"How do you know that?" the man asked angrily.
"This woman," Ano motioned to Obsi, "can speak with dragons. The creature you are hunting is from the Great Trench. It only comes out when there is a disturbance. What that may be we have yet to figure out."
The Fire leader snorted and crossed his arms across his massive chest. "You are a fool. You take the word of a woman, no a stranger, from who knows where, over the tribes? That is almost a declaration of war!"
Ano opened his mouth to speak but stopped and looked to the sky. The Fire leader turned and almost fell on his backside as Goda swooped overhead and landed on the beach. Ano caught the man's arm and helped him regain his balance.
"This cannot be," the Fire leader said.
Goda, realizing he had an audience, rose to his full height, spread his wings and roared.
The others from the Fire tribe scrambled out of their boat and joined their leader. The all dropped to one knee.
Obsi looked up at Goda as he put his front feet on the ground. "Showoff," she said.
Goda laughed, which was a bit unnerving. "It is not often I get to show off like this, Obsi. Please do not ruin it for me."
Obsi laughed and she and Leilani rolled the egg out from behind the rocks to in front of Goda. "This is why I called for you. The dragon Scorpa gave this to me. Would you please take it to my base and have Tim incubate it for me?"
Goda bowed his head. "Of course, Obsidian Wraith. Oh, and on my back is a pouch for you. Your sister sent you some supplies."
Obsi climbed on Goda's back and she heard a collective gasp from the Fire Tribe. She untied the pouch and jumped off.
"Thank you for bringing this and for taking the egg home for me," she said, patting the dragon's cheek.
Goda gently picked up the egg. "If you need me again, you know how to reach me. Until then, farewell." Goda rose to his full height and roared again before launching himself into the sky.
The Fire tribe pushed themselves to their feet and scrambled onto the beach. "That...that was...Goda!" The Fire Leader said.
"Yes," Obsi replied flatly.
"You...control him?"
Obsi shook her head. "No. He is a friend."
The Fire Tribe fell simultaneously to their knees. "We apologize for our comments before. We beg your forgiveness."
"There is nothing to forgive," she replied slowly. "However, you must not hunt Dreth."
"Agreed," the Fire Leader said as he rose to his feet. "Ano, I should know better than to doubt you."
"Yes, you should," snapped Maiara.
"I apologize for my false accusations and my inference that you wanted war. The Wave Tribe has always been peaceful unless provoked. I do not wish to provoke you."
Ano reached out and the men clasped arms. "My friend, I understand why you would say these things. I appreciate and accept your apology. I invite you to stay for the mid day meal."
The Fire leader shook his head. "No, we will return to our island and make sure no one continues to hunt the creature known as Dreth." With that, the Fire Tribe returned to their boat and paddled off.
Maiara put her hand on Ano's shoulder. "Vulc will not be pleased with this," she said softly.
"Probably not," Ano replied, "but there is not much he can do about it."
As the Wave Tribe returned to their village, a green fin stuck ever so slightly out of the water, just out of eyesight. Meglok waited for them to disappear into the jungle then breached himself out of the water and swam to the bottom of the ocean to wait.

Obsi and Leilani finished their patrol, unaware that Meglok had followed them, and returned to the village in time to help prepare the evening feast. Obsi was given the task of cutting up fruit. She put it all together into a wonderful salad that the village chefs overwhelmingly approved of.
After the meal, Maiara gathered those who were interested around the fire.
"Now, my children, let me tell to you the tale of the Reef Guardian, Chelonoth.
The beautiful reefs that surround the Island Nations were borne from one of his scales. He protects the reef, healing them when necessary. Any coral found washed up on the shore is a gift from him, and before one picks it up they need to say a prayer of thanks to him for his generosity. You know when Chelonoth is near when you hear a haunting melody coming from the waves, caused by the sea wind blowing through the coral on his back. He is rarely seen, but tales of long ago say that he has coral growths on his back and wings, a long tail like a shark, tentacles for front legs and frog-like legs on his hindquarters. He is believed to be a plant eater, as there are no reports of attacks on fish or human prey. He blends into the coral so he is almost invisible."
"Is that why it is forbidden to harvest coral?" one of the young girls asked.
Maiara nodded. "To take coral from the sea is an insult to Chelonoth. It is said that once a long time ago a villager from the Fire Nation disobeyed the rule and Chelonoth wiped out the entire village."
"Oooooh," the girl replied.
"Now, the sun is setting. Time to return to your homes and finish your nightly chores. The sun rises early!"
The small crowd disbursed. Obsi and Leilani retired to Leilani's hut for the night. When the sun rose so did they. They went on patrol on the opposite side of the island. The day was a hot one, so they decided to cool off in the water. They swam gently for a few minutes. As Leilani returned to the beach, Obsi tried to follow but something grabbed her leg...
…and dragged her under.
She forced her eyes open and saw she was in the grip of Scorpa. 
Do not be afraid, Scorpa said.
He took her into an underwater cave, gently placing her on the rocky shore. She caught her breath.
"Why have you brought me here?"
I need your help. I have an egg that I am unable to take care of. I would like to give it to you. You understand dragons. You will raise this egg as your own. I have never encountered such a human.
Scorpa emerged from the water and walked past Obsi. When he returned to her side, he had an egg in his mouth. He motioned for her to follow him back into the water. Once she was under the surface, he again took hold of her and swam quickly back to the beach. Scorpa released her and she broke through the water to hear Leilani calling for her.
"I'm here!" she called. She swam for the beach and watched Leilani's eyes widen as Scorpa followed her. He gently placed the egg in the sand and nodded to Obsi before diving back to the ocean's depths.
Leilani was speechless.
"He gave me this egg," Obsi said, a bit lost for words herself. She whistled for Poe, who almost immediately landed on her shoulder.
"Please go get Goda for me? I need him to take this egg home for me."
Poe cawed and took off. Obsi looked at Leilani and they both laughed.
"Well, I can say this, Obsidian Wraith, you are a constant source of surprises!" Lailani said with a smirk.
"Yeah," Obsi said with a sigh, "I get that a lot."

After another wonderful feast and a good nights' rest, the Wind Tribe headed back to their island once they had eaten breakfast and helped to clean up. Obsi was slightly ashamed with herself that the Tribe bowing to her as they left did not bother her has much as she felt it should. Leilani went on her daily patrol. The Elders invited Obsi to stay with them for the day, which she gratefully accepted. They sat around the fire in the center of the village and the oldest of the Elders, Maiara, spoke.
"Dreth is new to us. We will record his lore as we see him more. A dragon in our waters!" She clapped her hands in front of her and smiled. "This is truly an exciting time! However, we do have other legends that I want to tell you about, Obsidian Wraith." She looked at Obsi and waited. Obsi nodded, then she continued. "First, I shall tell you of the legend of Meglok."
"Meglok has patrolled the waters of the Island Nations for longer than anyone can remember. My grandmother used to tell tales of how her grandmother once caught a glimpse of Meglok. That is six generations back! It is said that he blends with the seaweed and kelp in the ocean, which is why he is almost never seen...unless he wants to be seen."
Maiara paused to take a sip of fruit juice. "Meglok is a fierce warrior. Bodies of gigantic sharks that wash up on the beaches are said to have been slain by Meglok. No creature alive can best him in combat! Unlike Scorpa, however, there is no known report of Meglok ever harming a human."
"Why is that?" Obsi asked, extremely intrigued by this tale.
"Because," Maiara said, leaning forward and lowering her voice to a whisper, "Meglok is the true ruler of the Island Nations." She glanced at Ano, then back at Obsi.
Ano sighed and rolled his eyes, feigning annoyance. "Everyone knows Meglok is the true ruler. However, until he decides to come live here, I will rule this Nation." He locked eyes with Maiara, who sat straight again. They stared at each other, narrowing their eyes simultaneously. After a few moments, Ano erupted in laughter.
Maiara smiled. "See, I get you with that one every time!"
Ano rose, walked over to the older woman and kissed the top of her head. "Yes, yes you do Mother. Now if you both will excuse me, I have to oversee the fruit harvest for today." He bowed to both of them, his green hair falling over his shoulders, then went off in the direction of the forest. 
After she was sure Ano was out of hearing range, Maiara said, "So, do you think Meglok could be a dragon?" in an excited voice.
Obsi chuckled a bit at the Elder's enthusiasm. "Well, from what you described, he certainly fits the profile of a dragon. But, until Dreth, I'd never heard of a dragon living totally under the water."
Maiara clapped her hands and giggled. "I have always dreamed of dragons! And to think, they may have been living right under my nose all the time!! I would love to listen to your tales of your dragons, but I believe you are wanted elsewhere." Her eyes lifted and Obsi turned her head to see Leilani approaching. She smiled, bowed to both of them and gave her grandmother a quick hug. 
"I came to see if maybe Obsidian Wraith wanted to join me on patrol for a bit?"
"She would love to!" Maiara answered with a wink. She rose with a quick bow and walked off in the same direction as Ano.
Obsi followed Leilani back to the beach. They walked slowly along, scanning both the water and the beach for anything unusual.
"So, what did you think of Grandmother?" Leilani asked after a few moments.
Obsi smiled. "She is wonderful! Exactly how I pictured my grandmothers. I never knew either of them. They lived far away from us. They both passed during the Blackblood Wars. But I will tell you about that another time," she said, hoping Leilani wouldn't press her further on the subject. She did not.
"What tale did she tell you?"
"Meglok. Have you ever seen him?"
Leilani shook her head. "I hope to every day, but have not as of yet. They consider it an honor to see him, but also a blessing if he is not seen. It is said that if he is seen too often it is because he is unhappy. This is why we leave a third of our catch alive and return it to the ocean, no matter how big or small that catch is. This is so Meglok knows we are not taking more than we need to survive." Obsi nodded and they walked along, chatting about the things they saw along the way.
Nearby and unseen, a ripple of water followed the pair. The creature under the ripple listened, until his name was not spoken any more and he got bored. Meglok dove deeper under the water, showing just the tiniest bit of his leaf-like fins.

Obsi sat around the fire with the villagers after the wonderful feast, regaling them with tales of dragons from when she was a child. She left out the part about her parents murder, and the subsequent years of running from the Blackbloods with Ash, and was careful what details she gave about Dally, but the villagers hung on her every word. Ano seemed to be the most impressed, telling the village that Obsi was to be given any courtesy and anything else she desired. She thanked him many times, and he seemed to be flattered by her gratitude. It was very late when she and Leilani returned to the hut. They slept soundly for several hours before being awakened at sunrise by the sound of horns.
"Something is amiss," Leilani said as she rushed out of the hut. Obsi followed to the village center, where a very tall man was speaking. 
"The Wind Tribe is in the Forbidden Cove," he declared angrily.
"What would they be doing there, Alon?" Leilani asked.
The man looked at her. "Hunting the Monster," he replied with a sneer. "Come with me," he said. Obsi, Leilani and several others followed to the cove. Not far off shore were two boats, each with six men and women paddling them toward the beach. 
"Look there," Alon said, pointing toward a large shape between them and the boats. Obsi saw it, the sun glistening off the blue of the shape. She waded into the water up to her knees, and the shape stopped moving. She bent over and put her hand into the water. Suddenly, the water swelled and a giant ray shot out of the water. The Wind Tribe had to hang onto the sides of their boats to keep from falling into the water. The creature was just as described - a huge ray with a crocodile-like face. The top of the creature was a beautiful aquamarine color, and his underside was a sand color. It flapped its wings and hovered just in front of Obsi.
"Dreth," she whispered. The dragon nodded. She reached out and touched his snout and he told her his story. She noticed the Wind Tribe had made it to shore and was watching her as well.
"Dreth means you no harm," she shouted so both tribes could hear her. "He only comes out of the Great Trench when there is a disturbance."
"What sort of disturbance?" Ano asked.
"He is not sure, but he is here to protect us, not harm us. And by 'us' I mean humans, not just the Wave Tribe," she looked over at the Wind Tribe to make sure they had heard her. They nodded, eyes wide, and she knew the whole goddess thing was going through their heads as well.
With a great flourish of his massive wings, Dreth returned to the water and disappeared. The distant skies began to darken. Ano walked over with his guards to the Wind Tribe. They spoke for a minute, then the Wind Tribe followed him back to where the others were standing.
"I have invited the Wind Tribe to stay, since the storm will not give them the time to safely return to their Island. The coming of Dreth is an omen - we must be hospitable to each other, and not quarrel over trivial tribal matters."
The eldest of the Wind men bowed to Obsi. "We as the Wind Tribe recognize the deity of the Wave Tribe." The rest of the Wind Tribe bowed to her and she awkwardly bowed in return.
As they walked back to the village, Obsi whispered to Leilani, "This goddess thing is going to be rough."
Leilani laughed. "Well, I think you can adjust."

"So," Leilani said as they sat themselves on grass mats inside her hut, "you want to know about Scorpa?" Obsi nodded. "Scorpa is a creature unlike any other sea life around the Island Nations," Leilani continued. "He is extremely poisonous. His venom will destroy metal. He poisons his prey and waits until they are weakened before moving in for the kill."
"Then why didn't Daido die?" Obsi asked.
"Well, he does not like the taste of human flesh. My guess is once he realized he had a human he let go, before the poison truly took hold."
"So Scorpa is intelligent," Obsi stated.
"Most of the larger sea life is," Leilani replied, "but yes, Scorpa is more intelligent than most." Leilani rose and brought a tray with a pitcher of liquid and two glasses over and sat it between them. She motioned for Obsi to help herself.
"And what about Meglok?" Obsi asked as she poured a glass of the yellow liquid into her cup. She took a small sip. The liquid was sweet and sour and she found it very refreshing.
"Lemon water," Leilani said as she poured herself some. "Now, as for Meglok…" she trailed off as they hear a commotion coming from the center of the village. They ran to the epicenter, but found everyone was heading to the far side of the village. Obsi heard a dragon roar. She took off in a full sprint, and pushed ahead of the villagers who were standing very close together in fear of what was before them.
Goda.
Obsi walked up to him and smiled. "What in the world are you doing here?"
"Well," Goda replied, pausing to let the audible gasps of the villagers die off, "your sister asked me to find you. And, this pesky creature decided to come as well," he said as Poe climbed onto the top of his head. The raven flew onto Obsi's shoulder and rubbed his head on her cheek. Obsi scratched his head and Goda peered over her. "I take it your are safe here?"
Obsi turned around to see the villagers prostrated on the ground, chanting something inaudible. She started to protest, and Goda laughed. "They think you are a goddess, yes?"
Obsi sighed. "Yes, and before this happened as well. They think only gods can come through the portal that brought me here."
"Perhaps they are right," Goda replied. "Where was the portal's exit on this island?"
"I'm not really sure. Leilani said it was near the Shrine of Namaka, I think."
Goda cocked his head to one side. "Namaka. I have not heard that name in quite some time. I do not know much about her, but that she is very powerful, especially in the Island Nations." He straightened his head and his eyes fell on something behind Obsi. Leilani came to her side and stopped.
"Leilani, this is Goda. He is a friend," Obsi said gently.
"It is a pleasure to meet you," Leilani said with a bow. "May I ask what manner of creature you are?"
"A dragon," Goda and Obsi said in unison. The villagers sat up and gasped again almost as one, and Goda chuckled. "I assume you do not get many dragons here, Leilani?"
Leilani shook her head. "Dragons are...well...were...just stories to us."
"Well," Goda said, rising to his full height and preparing to take off, "you may see more of us, or at least me, if Obsi stays for a while. Which I am very certain she will." He turned around and looked back at Obsi. "Oh, and this goddess thing...I would go with it if I were you." He took off into the sky, and everyone watched until he disappeared into the horizon.
"I have never even thought I would meet a dragon, never the less completely agree with one," Leilani said in a voice barely above a whisper.
"Then I suppose I shouldn't tell you how many I have met," Obsi replied with a laugh.
Leilani looked at her with wide eyes, and linked arms with her as they walked back into the village. "Yes," she whispered. "Yes, I would very much like it if you would tell me all about dragons!"

​Obsi followed Leilani to her village. The buildings were much what she expected from an island village; huts made of strong wood and thatched roofs. The people were dressed in the same fashion as Leilani, and they all waved and smiled as the pair walked to the largest hut at the far end of the village.

“This is the dwelling of our Chieftain, Ano,” Leilani explained. “I’m certain I do not need to say this, but please let me do the talking until he addresses you directly.”

“Of course,” Obsi whispered as they entered.

In the center of the large hut there was a small dias with a throne-like chair. Several villagers, all seemingly Elders, sat on the floor on either side of the throne. On the throne sat a large man, both in height and girth, wearing a large headdress. Obsi did not look directly at anyone and waited for Leilani to speak. When Leilani dropped to one knee, Obsi did the same.

“Greetings, Father,” Leilani said.

“Greetings, Daughter,” Ano replied in a deep but gentle voice. “I see you have found a Traveler.”
Leilani stood, and again Obsi did the same. “Yes, but she is no ordinary Traveler. She came to the island through a magic portal, in the cave near the Shrine of Namaka.”

Ano stood abruptly. “Only gods can come through magic portals,” he said, his eyes widening. He looked at Obsi. “You are a goddess?” he asked.

Obsi shook her head. “No…”

“This is Obsidian Wraith,” Leilani interrupted. “She was in a great battle, then saw a glow coming from a cave. The image she described sounded to me like the Mark of Nemaka.”

Ano continued to stare at Obsi as he spoke. “Then, at the very least, you were summoned here by the Goddess Nemaka. We have not asked Nemaka for a Traveler, but She is wise in her doings.” He stepped down and walked over to them. He bowed to Obsi. “Please, Obsidian Wraith, let us honor your arrival with a feast this evening.”

“Ummm…” Obsi looked at Leilani for help. Leilani nodded. “I would be honored,” Obsi replied as diplomatically as she could. Being called a goddess unnerved her, but she knew her protests would be seen as an insult, so she pushed them aside. Ano stood, and motioned for the Elders to leave ahead of them. They then exited the hut. 

“Leilani, please take our guest to your hut until the feast is ready,” Ano said.

“Yes, Father,” Leilani replied, taking Obsi by the arm. They started to walk toward the far corner of the village, but a commotion near the center of the village drew their attention. They rushed over, and saw two men carrying a third who was wounded. They gently set him on the ground, and one rushed off to get help.

“What happened?” Leilani asked as she knelt next to the wounded man.

“We were spear fishing near the reef, and Daido was attacked by Scorpa.”

Concern crossed Leilani’s face. “Scorpa does not attack humans unless they are interfering with his prey. What were you fishing for and how close to the reef were you?”

The man looked down, embarrassment coloring his face. “We were chasing tuna and were too close to the reef. I am sorry, Leilani. But just as Scorpa let Daido go, we saw...the monster.”

Two women rushed over with medicine to treat the poison burns covering Daido’s right arm and upper leg. Leilani stood to give them space to work. “Tell me,” she said to the man.

“It was a gigantic manta ray, with the face of a crocodile. It watched us, but did nothing.”

Leilani nodded. “Go tell Ano this,” she ordered, “and stay away from the reef for a while. Scorpa let you off with a warning. Do not test him.”

The man nodded and rushed off. Obsi knelt next to Daido. “Will he be alright?” she asked the women working on his wounds.

“Yes,” one of them replied, “he will need a few days of rest and medicine, but he will live.”

“Thank you,” Obsi said as she stood. She turned to Leilani and they continued their walk to her hut. “So, what do you serve at a feast? And who or what is Scorpa?”

Obsi put her hands up in front of her, while the woman behind her continued her choke hold. “I mean no harm,” Obsi said slowly. “I am Obsidian Dall of the clan Invidia’s Wraith. I saw a glow in a cave and went to investigate, and when I touched the wall it brought me here.”
The woman dropped her hold on Obsi, and Obsi turned to face her. The woman was young, a few inches shorter than Obsi, and very muscular. Her long black hair was partly curled into a bun on top of her head, held in place with an ornate stick. Her arms were tattooed with tiger stripes and ornate blue bands adorned her wrists. Her short skirt, which was slit up to her thighs on both sides, was held with a belt that matched the bands. Bundles of grass were neatly tied to the belt at her hips and on the shoulders of her short grey top. A necklace of what looked like dragon teeth hung around her neck and her calves and feet were wrapped in tan cloth. She held in each hand a long stick with a large stone carved into an axe-like shape. The last thing Obsi noticed were her pointed ears.
They stared at each other for a few moments before Obsi spoke. “Now, may I ask who you are?” she said in as friendly a tone as she could muster.
The woman lowered her weapons to the sand. “I am Leilani of the Wave Tribe. I patrol the beaches of this island and protect the sea life from poachers. My tribe has inhabited this island for centuries. I have been looking for a sea monster that is rumored to be in our waters.”
“A sea monster?” Obsi asked, slightly confused as to why anyone would intentionally look for a monster.
“Yes. Some say it is malevolent, but others say it is a gentle creature. Tribes from other islands are hunting for it. I do not want them to harm it until we are able to figure out what it is.”
Obsi nodded. “I wonder if that creature has anything to do with the glowing symbol I saw in the cave that brought me here.”
“It is possible,” Leilani replied. “Can you show me this symbol?”
Obsi looked at Leilani warily. “You aren’t going to club me from behind or anything, are you?”
Leilani snorted. “If I was going to do that I would have done it already,” she replied flatly.
“Fair enough,” Obsi said with a sigh. She led Leilani into the cave, which was much smaller than the one she had entered in the Sacred Ridge. On the wall was the same symbol, the “dragon print”, etched in black. 
Leilani gasped and said something in a language Obsi didn’t understand. She put her hand to her mouth, and stared at the symbol with wide eyes, then turned to Obsi.
“We must go to my village. The Elders will want to hear of this.”

​

"Where's Obsi?" Dally asked again, panic rising in her voice.
Ash pointed to the cave. "I saw her go over there. There was a strange glow..." Her voice trailed off as Dally ran toward the cave. Ash, Lag and Adder followed her. When Dally reached the back of the cave, the glow was gone, and so was Obsi.
"What is that?" Lag asked, pointing to the charred remains of the once glowing dragon print on the cave wall.
Ash walked up to the wall and touched the print. "This was a portal," she said.
"To where?" Adder asked.
Ash shrugged. "I'm not sure. It doesn't feel malevolent, but that is all I can sense right now."
Dally's heart raced. "We have to find her!" She ran out of the cave and over to Goda and explained the situation.
Goda looked at Celia. "I want you to go to my fortress and manage things for me. I will try to find what happened to Obsi."
Celia's mouth dropped open. "Really? You'd trust me with that?"
Goda chuckled. "Yes, Celia. You have proven yourself worthy of my clan. I trust you to oversee things for a few days. Mainly you will have to break up fights."
Celia grinned. "I can do that!"
"Lucky," Adder muttered, folding his arms across his chest. Celia patted him on the shoulder and they laughed.
"You'd do that? You'll go look for Obsi?" Dally asked, shocked.
"Of course," Goda replied. "Besides, I haven't been out on an extended flight in a very long time. It will be good to stretch my wings for a bit." He stretched himself to his full height and looked back at Dally. "Go back to your fortress. There is something waiting there for you. I will send word as soon as I know anything." With that, he took off into the sky and disappeared.
Dally sighed. "Ok, I suppose it's time to go home." She looked at Celia. "Will you be ok?"
Celia nodded. "Yes, for the first time in a long time, I will." They hugged, and went their separate ways.
When Dally arrived back at her base, she found a tattooed egg in her incubator. She smiled.
…
Obsi emerged from the cave onto a beautiful expanse of beach along a crystal clear ocean. She raised her arm to shade her eyes from the sun, and an arm went across her throat. She felt a cold weapon on the side of her neck.
"Who are you?" a gruff female voice demanded.

Obsi put her hands on the table in front of her and pushed herself out of her chair. The table in the meeting hall was filled with the team's leadership, and they were planning to go and help rid the Sacred Ridge of the Blackbloods. She had been waiting for replies to the messages Dally had sent out for support, but so far she had only heard from two of the alliance teams. She pushed the thought out of her mind and looked at Lagertha.
"Are we ready for this?" she asked.
"Hell yeah we are!" Lag exclaimed. "Let's go kill some bad guys!"
Lag led the group out onto the base, and Obsi was stunned by the sight. There were hundreds of dragons in the air. She smiled and looked at Lag.
"This should be fun!"
…
Dally stood in the middle of an open field, between two mountains of the Sacred Ridge. To her left were rolling hills that slowly climbed the side of a mountain. To the left, a ridge with several deep caves. Saito, Celia, Kazane and Kamaitachi stood with her, waiting for someone else to show up. Goda stood behind them with several dozen of his men. He'd told her that they would get involved if needed.
The minutes seemed like hours.
Suddenly and simultaneously, her teammates and the Blackbloods appeared. The sky erupted in a swirl of dragons and riders, circling the ground and each other. Fomhar swept down over Dally's head and Lag raised her sword and yelled something Dally couldn't understand. The dragons of her teammates flew low to the ground and the riders jumped off, weapons ready. The Blackbloods followed suit. As the dragons flew off to land, Soldier and Lag led the small group of team and alliance members toward the Blackbloods. Dally followed with her sais, and looked to her left and watched Lag put her sword through one of the Blackblood guards throat and laugh as blood trickled out of his eyes. She looked to her right and saw Soldier bludgeoning a guard with his massive mace, Tishen and Matt were slicing through Blackbloods with their swords like they were made of air. Onslaught was swinging a mace wrapped in barbed wire and knocked down five guards at once. Redava threw one of her curved dragon blades to Obsi and the two of them sliced their way to where Slender stood. 
He looked horrified.
The bodies of his men lay around him, most in pieces, and he was frozen in place.
Dally sneered and ran toward him. Before she could pierce his armor with her weapon, a phantom gust of wind pushed her backwards. Sakura flapped her massive wings, sending gusts of white pedals toward Dally and her team. She landed behind Slender, who still hadn't moved, and Ash jumped off her back.
"I think this battle is over," she said. She grabbed Slender and shook him. "Where is Xander?" she asked through clenched teeth.
As if on cue, Skarr appeared with Xander on his back. Ash pulled a crossbow off her back and shot in front of Xander, knocking him off balance and he tumbled to the ground. Adder and Grimm stepped back and let him hit the ground, and as he rolled over Adder put his foot on Xander's chest and Grimm placed his sword on his throat. Ash walked over, motioned for Adder and Grimm to move back, and pulled Xander to his feet. She dragged him over and threw him to the ground in front of Dally.
Xander pushed himself up on all fours, still trying to catch his breath from his landing. Dally crouched down and raised his chin with her finger. She looked him dead in the eyes with a rage he could feel down to his toes.
"You," she snarled, " will leave the Sacred Ridge and never return. If I ever hear of you or your men even thinking about this place, I will hunt you down and kill you slowly. I will pull your intestines out through your nose and your brain out through your anus. You will beg me to kill you and I won't do it. Just because you asked. Am I clear?"
Xander nodded. Lag kicked him in his cracked ribs and made him scream. "Yes!!!!"
Dally stood, and looked around. There were about five guards left, and the other few that remained, including Slender, had already fled. She noticed that none of the other remaining members of Gustav's forces were there. She smiled.
The Blackblood guards timidly came forward and helped Xander to his feet. They left as quickly as his injuries would let him. As they flew off, Lag raised her sword and everyone cheered.
Ash turned to Dally and Obsi. "I apologize for how I got your attention. There are factors you do not know and I cannot tell you, but they cannot die. Not yet."
Dally sighed. "Of course."
Ash smiled and patted her shoulder. "All in good time. Which yes, I only said to make you mad."
Obsi shook her head and hugged Dally. "Nice job, sis."
Dally laughed. "Yeah, I did it all by myself."
Ash handed a key to Dally. "You have the three keys now. You can bring Ronin out of the Ridge and give him a new Rider."
Without hesitation, Dally walked over to Saito and handed him the keys. Saito smiled as the keys transformed into a golden katana. He raised the sword over his head, and Ronin came out of the Ridge and landed next to him.
"Thank you, Princess Dallyah," Saito said, choking back tears. He climbed on Ronin's back and they flew into to the ridge.
Ash climbed back onto Sakura and they flew off, white petals streaming to the ground and soaking up the puddles of blood.
Something made Obsi turn toward one of the caves. A soft green glow caught her eye, and she slowly walked toward it. The cave was deep, and the only light was the green glow. Obsi followed the light to the back of the cave. On the wall was a glowing shape that looked like a dragon's paw print. A flutter behind her made her jump, and her raven, Poe, landed on her shoulder.
"What that?" the bird asked.
"I have no idea," she said. She reached out and touched the light, and was sucked into a portal and disappeared.
As Dally and the rest prepared to head home, she looked around. "Where's Obsi?"

Xander slammed his palms on the table in his war room and sneered at his generals. "The traitors will pay," he said threateningly through clenched teeth. He turned his daggerous stare to Morrigan, who was bound to a chair in the corner. She returned his glare.
"I am no traitor. I have not, and will not, take sides in your petty feud," she hissed.
"If you are not on my side you are a traitor," Xander replied flatly. He motioned to the guards standing on either side of her chair. "Take her to the dungeon. She can join Thorne and Diana." As the guards marched Morrigan out of the room, Xander began to circle the table as he spoke.
"I want what is in those temples," he stated slowly. "Goda cannot stop us. Dallyah cannot stop us. The Guardians will fall and their treasures will be mine."
"Ours," Slender corrected.
Xander stopped behind him and tilted his chair backwards. "Mine to dole out as I see fit," he said, letting go of the chair so it fell to the floor. Slender somehow managed to keep from bouncing his head off of the floor and quickly righted his chair and sat. 
"Now," Xander continued, "Arden, Spiculus , ready the Minions; they will be the battalion leaders, under your command. This will be a ground battle, but I want Laria, Slender, Morgana and myself to oversee from our dragons. Now go, we leave at sunset."
He waited until the room empties, then went to the desk in the far corner of the room. He retrieved a rope from which four small skulls dangled, and smiled as he gently ran his fingers over them.
"Soon," he whispered, "soon you will be free and we will rule this world!"

Several hours later, on the back of Ronin, the trio approached Goda’s stronghold. Kanzane said it was an abandoned fortress from centuries ago that Goda and his band had restored and reinforced. It sat in the midst of a fairly large clearing, surrounded on three sides by thick forest. The back half of the fortress was built into the side of the mountain. A moat surrounded the stronghold, flowing into the mountain as well. Dally could see something moving in the moat as they landed. She was fairly certain she did not want to know what it was.
They dismounted, and Ronin retreated to the woods, staying within eyesight of the fortress. Suddenly, a dragon shot out of the top of the fortress and soared into the sky until almost out of sight, then turned and rocketed toward them.
“Do not move,” Kazane said through her teeth.
Goda landed three feet in front of them. He was just as Kazane had described. He has a head of gray hair like an old man, and his long teeth made his mouth into a permanent sneer. His wings seemed to be painted with flames with the body of a serpent arching over them. He wore intricate Samurai type armor on his legs, head, chest and wing bones. His eyes were not visible under the shadow of the armor. Goda lowered his massive head to their eye level.
“Ah, Kazane, how is my favorite Guardian today?” he said in a gruff voice.
Kazane bowed, and Dally and Celia followed suit. “I am well, Master Goda, how are you this fine day?”
“I am well,” he replied. “I was quite surprised to find you were bringing me visitors. The fact that one of them is a long-lost princess is perplexing.”
Dally spoke slowly. “With all due respect, Master Goda, I am no princess. I am a Dragon Lord.”
Goda smiled, which was very unnerving. “Dragon Lord? Because you breed dragons and feed them and they do your bidding? Because you understand them? Everyone understands me, does that make them Dragon Lords?”
Dally sneered in response. “Yes, that is what makes me a Dragon Lord. But there is much more to it, so no, simply understanding you when you actually speak does not make someone a Dragon Lord.”
Goda chuckled and straightened to his full massive height. “What is it that you want from me, Princess Dragon Lord?”
“First, I want to let you know we appreciate you chasing the Blackbloods out of the Ridge,” Dally said. “However, they will be back, and in greater numbers, as I am sure you realize. I would like to propose a collaboration to rid the Ridge of the true Blackbloods for good.”
Goda snorted, puffing fire out of his nostrils. “The true Blackbloods, eh? Are the true ones the evil ones? Or are they the ones who have regained their honor, like the one standing next to you?”
Celia bowed in acknowledgement of the compliment. Dally looked over at her, then back at Goda.
“The Blackblood name is tarnished beyond repair, in my opinion. It will be forever linked with Gustav and Kharnyx and the destruction they wrought.”
“Yes, you may be right,” Goda replied, “but are you not half Blackblood?”
“I am,” Dally replied without hesitating, “but that half does not define me.”
Goda snorted fire again. “We shall see about that.” He lowered his head down to their level. “I will leave it up to my people as to whether or not they want to help you or not. I make no promises there. However, I myself will be there to help. Kazane will keep me updated.”
Kazane bowed. “Of course.”
“Is there anything else you want of me at the moment?” Goda asked, turning slightly to prepare for takeoff.
“No, Master Goda, that is all for now,” Dally replied. “Thank you for your time, and we appreciate your forthcoming assistance with the matter at hand.”
Goda looked back at her and smiled. “You are very much not a ‘true Blackblood’, Princess. Gustav was not smart enough to pronounce such big words.” With that he rocketed into the sky and dove head first into the center of the fortress.
Ronin emerged from the forest and the trio turned to meet him. Celia let out a loud breath and a nervous laugh.
“Well, I think that went well, yes?”

Dally and Celia spent the night at Kazane’s temple. In the morning, the Guardian treated them to a breakfast of steamed rice, miso soup, grilled fish, tsukemono, nori, and a seaweed salad. The women enjoyed their breakfast and light conversation while sitting in the sunlight that streamed in through the temples windows. After they’d eaten, Kazane served them all a cup of tea and invited them to follow her out onto the sitting room behind the temple. As they sat, Kazane spoke.
“You were asking about Goda yesterday,” she began in a soft and serious tone. “Goda is unlike any dragon you have ever encountered. He has a head of gray hair like an old man, and the teeth of a crocodile. His wings are tattooed in flames and snakes. The story is that he was born in the midst of a forest fire. As he emerged from his egg, a giant snake tried to make a meal of him. Goda bit the head off of the snake and swallowed it whole. They say the snake tried to regenerate itself, and instead the image of its body embedded itself into the flesh of Godas’ wings. The fire did not burn him, but lifted his wings so he could fly away, also etching their mark on his wings. Goda has the gift of speech, like Jarl and Kaiji, and he rules over a group of humans, like Jarl as well. However, he does not appreciate tricks or cold-blooded murder. Thievery, however, he tolerates to a point. Thieves of Honor, some of his band call themselves.”
“Sounds fairly contradictory,” Dally said as she sipped her tea.
Kazane smiled. “Yes and no. Goda will accept law breakers, but with many conditions. One: anything stolen is shared with the group. Two: stealing from the group is punishable by death. Three: all grievances will be aired in front of the group and Goda, and if they cannot be solved the parties are dismissed from the group. Four: Goda only accepts those whom he deems to be honorable souls. Anyone he takes in that proves him wrong is executed. Five: stealing from the temples and/or Guardians is punishable by death.”
“Sounds a bit like Gustav,” Celia said with a snort, “only without the honor.”
“Oh Gustav had honor,” Kazane replied, “until Kharnyx got a hold of him. Which is why Goda had no problem chasing Xander and his men out of the Ridge; he views all of Gustav’s forces as honorless as he was at the end.” Celia sighed and shifted uneasily in her seat. She smiled and leaned forward, placing her hand on top of Celia’s. “If you were truly without honor, you would not be here. You will be fine.”
“What happens if Goda doesn’t agree with you?” Dally asked softly.
Kazane sat back and shrugged. “She will not be allowed in, that is all. But I do not think we have anything to worry about.”
“Xander won’t stay out of the Ridge for long,” Dally said. “They only pulled back to regroup, and they will come in stronger next time. Do you think Goda would help us push them back?”
“Us? As in the three of us?” Celia asked, eyes wide.
Dally smiled slyly. “No. I have friends that would help.”
“Of course you do,” Celia said with mock resentment.
“As do I,” Kazane said. “But we should talk to Goda before we rally our troops.”
Dally finished her tea and set her cup down gently. “So, when do we leave?”
“We can leave after we clean up after ourselves,” Kazane said as she stood. “It only takes about an hour by dragon to get there. I will send a raven ahead to let Goda know we are coming.”
Dally nodded. ”Do you think he will help us?”
Kazane nodded as she led them back into the temple. “I do, but it will take some convincing. And if anyone can convince Goda to help, it would be you.”
Celia leaned in next to Dally’s ear and whispered, “No pressure there, Dragon Lord.”
Dally glared at her and Celia laughed. “Would you go help Kazane clean up? I need to send a raven of my own. Or two. Or five…”
Celia laughed again. “Of course. Go rally those friends of yours. We will need them, with or without Goda’s help.”
Dally watched her cousin walk away and sighed. These next steps would cross the lines of the Atlas. What was at stake was bigger than that, however, and she hoped that she could convince everyone to put it all aside and work together to defeat the Blackbloods. She shook her head and marched to the Temple library to send her ravens, and hoped they’d return with good news.

The trio landed on what was the property of Celia’s family, and Kazane took Ronin to get Kamaitachi. As Dally and Celia watched her fly off, Celia sighed.

“Dallyah, I have something to tell you,” she blurted out. Dally looked at her quizzically, and she took a deep breath before continuing. “First, I know I’ve said this before, but I hope you know that Titan, Deathclaw and myself knew nothing of Gustav’s plan to murder your parents.”
“I know.”
“If we did, well, we probably would have died with them. I don’t know if Gustav knew this or not, but for whatever reason he sent us to dispose of their bodies.” Celia paused to measure Dally’s reaction, which was minimal, before continuing. “I found out right before that happened that it was a band of Gustav’s goons, or more like Slender and his gang, that murdered my parents. My brothers are still missing to this day. I have no idea where they are or if they are even alive. I haven’t taken revenge on Slender yet just in case I find them. They deserve to be in on that too. But, I’m getting off topic.
“When we found the King and Queen…they had been stripped of everything but their underclothes and wedding rings. Deathclaw hid the rings…I asked him to, so no one else would steal them. I asked him to bring them to you when this is over.”
“Oh Celia…” Dallyah breathed, tears welling in her eyes.
Celia put up her hand. “Trust me, it was the very least I could do. As is this. Follow me.” She led Dally to the dilapidated barn. The barn was warded, and it took Celia a good minute to cast the spell to allow them to pass. Inside, the structure was pristine. The wooden beams had been covered with metal to prevent deterioration. In the center of the barn was a small gazebo. Celia went to the center of it and pulled up a trap door. She grabbed a torch from one of the pillars, lit it, and motioned for Dally to follow her. Dally hesitated, then followed Celia down the circular flight of stairs below. By the time she got to the bottom Celia had lit four torches on the wall.
Dally looked around in amazement. “It’s a crypt!”
The room was about twelve meters square with walls made of white stone. The floor was crimson brick in the center and dirt along the walls. Ornate sconces lined the walls. Directly in front of them against the far wall were four graves, which were spaced out to take up half of the wall. The graves were not marked, but each had a stone in the middle, ornately decorated in beige, blue and brown.
“I buried my parents here. I built this room myself. It helped me grieve, some at least. I left two graves unfilled, in case I found my brothers. The two to our right are my parents. The other two are where we buried yours.”
Dally was speechless. She looked at Celia, hoping her eyes conveyed a fraction of the gratitude she felt. Celia could not tell if Dally was angry or not, so she looked away.
“Celia,” Dally began, “I honestly can’t put into words what I’m feeling right now. I never allowed myself to think about what happened to them…after…what you did for them goes beyond loyalty. This is the perfect spot for them. I can never thank you enough for this.”
Celia shrugged. “As I said, it was the very least I could do. I’m just glad you’re not angry. I was very prepared for you to be angry.”
Dally laughed. “No, my friend, I am not angry. This will be the perfect place for Katsuo as well.”
Celia smiled. “I hope the Guardians agree.”
They made their way back up to the barn and found shovels. Kazane and Kamaitachi arrived and were shown the spot Celia had in mind for their uncle. They overwhelmingly approved, so the four of them set to preparing for the funeral. Kazane and Celia went to the crypt to dig the grave. Dallyah and Kamaitachi gathered large sticks and branches for the pyre. Ronin guarded them all, along with Katsuo’s remains.
At dusk, they lit the pyre. Kazane sang a song in a language that Dally and Celia did not understand, but the meaning was very clear. At the end, Ronin joined her by howling. Another dragon’s voice joined as well.
“Zenko,” Dally whispered through her tears.
Once the fire burned out, they carefully filled the urn Kamaitachi had brought with the ashes and buried it in the crypt. As the others turned to leave, Dally knelt between her parents.
“The last thing you said to me was, ‘Make us proud’. I hope I have done that. I know Obsi has, because I’m very proud of her. I love you both very much and I miss you.” She put out the torches as she made her way back up to the barn. She found her companions outside with Ronin.
“I asked Ronin to come back to the temple with me, but I do not know what his answer is,” Kamaitachi said while scratching Ronin’s chin.
Dally smiled. “He said yes.”
“Good! Then let us head back there. The two of you can spend the night with us. I have something I need to talk to you about in the morning.”
“Oh?” Dally said as they climbed onto Ronin’s back.
Kazane laughed. “Yes, my sister is quite the trickster at times. I believe it comes from occasionally being around Zenko.”
“What did you trick us about?” Celia asked through clenched teeth.
Kamaitachi waved her hand. “No, no, no, nothing bad! I just know it was not your little talk with Celia and her counterparts that drove the Blackbloods out of the mountains.”
Dally shrugged. “I didn’t really think so. It was too quick.”
Kazane nodded. “Yes, but one of them ran into one of Goda’s men in a tavern. He told the man who the Blackbloods were, and Goda had his men drive them out.”
“Who is Goda?” Celia demanded, somewhat confused.
“That is what we will discuss in the morning,” Kamaitachi replied. “For now, Ronin, take us home.”

Dally and Celia returned to the temple at dawn and found Kamaitachi and another Guardian who looked exactly like her waiting for them.
“This is Kazane,” Kamaitachi said. “She is my twin sister. She will take you into the mountains to find Ronin.” After a brief round of introductions and a quick breakfast, the trio took off into the mountains.
“Our uncle was Ronin’s rider,” Kazane began as they walked. “He named his dragon Ronin, or ‘masterless samurai’, because they were equals. They were never apart until the day the Blackbloods attacked them while they were sleeping. They got separated and my uncle was believed to be slain.”
“How long ago was that?” Celia asked.
“About 15 years or so,” Kazane replied. “At the beginning of Gustav’s traitorous plan. He told the King that he was fighting raiders and bandits, but he was not. He was trying to raid the temples to get gold to fund his endeavors. He was repeatedly unsuccessful. Once my uncle was slain, Goda and his forces moved in and drove Gustav out. Now, Xander has taken up his father’s cause. There are none like my uncle to keep them out, and Zenko does his best to deter invaders, but we cannot do this alone. But, I digress. Our mission today is to find Ronin.”
“Who is Goda?” Dally asked, knowing she’d heard the name before and struggling to remember.
Kazane shook her head. “That is a tale for another time. For now, we are almost to the last place I saw Ronin.”
They climbed up a small hill and onto a flat, barren patch of land stretched out in front of a cave. They started forward slowly. Kazane put a finger to her lips to signal they should keep quiet, but it was too late.
Ronin exploded from the mouth of the cave with a deafening, bone-shattering roar. Get away! It said. The trio stopped in their tracks, frozen for a moment. Kazane and Celia looked at Dally.
“Stay here,” Dally whispered as she slowly took a step forward.
Ronin lowered his head, spread his wings and roared again. The spikes on his helmet and armor were pushed forward to form a blockade of sorts. He clearly did not want company.
“Shhhh,” Dally said, her arms spread to her sides, “I’m not going to hurt you. I want to help you.”
Ronin looked at her for a moment, then let out another roar, every decibel of which was soaked in grief. He is gone! I do not know where he is, but he is gone!
Dally tried to take another step forward but faltered and fell to her knees as Ronin’s anguish washed over her. She tried to push herself back to her feet but ended up on all fours hysterically crying. Ronin took a step back, watching her with great curiosity. It took a few minutes for Dally to pull herself together. As she stood she locked eyes with the heartbroken dragon.
“I know how you feel,” she said, her voice shaky and cracking. “I too have lost. My parents were also murdered, possibly by the same scum that killed your rider. I never got to say good bye either. If you will let us, we would like to help you find where your rider fell and give him the honor he deserves.”
Ronin slumped to the ground, a single tear falling from his blue eye. He watched Dally as she slowly made her way over to him. She sat in front of him and put her hands on the spike at the end of his armored mask. Ronin sighed.
“Will you let us help you?” Dally whispered.
Ronin sighed again. Yes. I can take you to where I think he was last. I do not know if that will help.
Dally smiled. “It’s a start. Thank you, Ronin.”
Dally stood, and Ronin stood with her and exited the cave, turning so his left side was facing Dally. He laid down, allowing her to climb on his back. Dally knew he had not let anyone do that since his rider, and she was humbled to tears. She slumped forward and sobbed. She felt Celia and Kazane climb onto his back behind her, and when she turned to look at them she saw they had be crying too.
“Girl, you are a mess,” Celia said with a shaky smile. “I haven’t cried like this…well…ever!”
Dally smiled. “I’m not sure if I should be sorry about that,” she teased.
Celia rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Just get this beautiful boy moving,” she growled with mock anger.
“You heard her, Ronin,” she said as she gently rubbed his neck. “Let’s get moving.”

Dally rose at dawn and said good bye to Obsi. She found Celia waiting for her outside the Den. They flew Haku back to the cabin and found that Dally's guests had built another set of rooms onto the back of it. Dally put Haku in the stable, where Kaiji pretended to be asleep. She smiled and shook her head. She saw Saito sitting on the cabin steps talking with Celia.
"So, you guys have been busy," she said as she took a seat next to Saito.
"Yes, I had a feeling you would not return alone, and Hayai and Kuma take up quite a bit of room."
Dally laughed. "Especially Kuma! I see you've met my cousin."
Saito nodded. "She will be of help. I know where her family is from, and that is close to the third temple."
"I haven't been there in ages," Celia said thoughtfully. "I hope I remember my way around."
"Things have changed quite a bit, but I am sure you will be fine," Saito replied. "Do you want to come in and see the new addition, or will you be heading off now?"
"We should go," Celia declared as she looked toward the mountains. "I'd like to get back before dark, and we don't have much time."
Dally nodded. "Let's go."
"Dinner will be waiting for you when you return," Saito called after them. They waved and headed down the path that led to the mountains.
They walked in silence for the first kilometer. A foul odor overtook them, and they both stopped abruptly.
"What is that?" Celia said, putting her hand over her mouth and nose.
"I think," Dally said, walking farther up the trail, "yep, it's dragon dung."
Celia caught up to her and they both stared at an extremely large pile of dragon dung. It did not look like the dragon had "naturally" deposited it there, but like it had been placed there.
"Is this here to stop people from using the path?" Celia said, her voice muffled by her hand.
Dally shrugged. "I don't know, but let's get around it quick before our lunch comes back to haunt us." Celia nodded, and they walked around the foul mass and went a bit into the woods. Dally turned around to make sure Celia was behind her, and let out a scream when she saw Celia lunge for her. She stepped back and felt the ground fall from under her heels. Celia grabbed Dally's shirt and pulled her forward.
"You were going to step into a trap," Celia said, pointing behind Dally.
Dally turned around and saw there indeed was a hole in the ground, partially covered by tree limbs. "Thanks," she said to Celia. 
Celia shrugged. "I should have said something, but I just reacted."
"Good thing," Dally said, peering into the hole. It wasn't very deep, and it looked like something had dug the hole with very large paws.
"Let's just keep going," Celia urged. "I'm not liking this at all. Let's just get to the temple."
They walked around the hole and went back to the path. They walked, constantly looking around for more impediments to their progress. They saw the temple in the distance, and quickened their pace.
A loud crunching sound shattered the silence and a huge rock fell onto the path a few feet in front of them. They jumped back, and a large dragon shadow passed over them. Celia looked up and her eyes got very wide.
"Zenko," she whispered. "The trickster dragon."
"That's not very nice!" Dally yelled at Zenko. "You could have killed us!"
The dragon turned in the sky and landed on the path on the other side of the rock. He laid his head on the rock, and sighed. I'm sorry, he was saying.
Dally put her hands on her hips. "You should be sorry! You want to play tricks but we're not dragons!"
Zenko sighed again, then pushed the rock out of the way. He turned, and hunkered himself low to the ground and looked over his shoulder at them. Climb on!
Dally motioned for Celia to follow, and they climbed on Zenko's back. He flew them up the hill, and landed in front of the Temple. Kamaitachi stood on the Temple steps, staring in awe at the duo as they climbed down from Zenko's back.
"I see you've made a friend," she said softly.
"After he tried to kill us," Celia growled. 
"Not on purpose," Dally said.
Kamaitachi smiled and approached them slowly. "He is a bit of a nuisance. But, he doesn't intentionally try to harm anyone."
Zenko snorted.
"Anyway," Dally said, patting Zenko's cheek, "I did talk to my contacts in the Blackbloods. Celia here is one of them. They are fighting Xander's forces as well."
"Well, I am not sure if it was your discussion or the fact that they want to attack on other fronts, but the Blackbloods have pulled out of the Ridge," Kamaitachi said as she slowly reached out to touch Zenko's snout.
"When?" Celia asked.
"This morning," Kamaitachi replied.
Celia grinned at Dallyah. "Guess it worked," she said proudly.
Dally shrugged. "I highly doubt Xander moved because of me."
Kamaitachi smiled. "Your humility defines you, Princess. Come back tomorrow, I will help you find Ronin."
Dally bowed. "Thank you, Guardian. May I ask one thing of you?"
Kamiatachi nodded. "Of course."
Dally patted Zenko. "Please don't call me Princess. I am a Dragon Lord."

Dally left the cabin at sunrise and arrived on Obsi's base around dinner time. Obsi was waiting for her outside the den when she and Haku landed. She smiled as she watched Obsi's eyes widen.
"And who might this beautiful boy be?" Obsi asked as she reached up to stroke Haku's chin.
"This is Haku. I'll tell you all about him on the way to the meeting hall." She relinquished Haku to the Druids and told Obsi a brief recount of the last few days. As they reached the meeting hall, Dally stopped.
"Does the team know the Blackbloods are coming?" she asked.
Obsi grinned. "Oh yeah," she said as she opened the door.
Dally entered to see the most of the team was there, ready to show the Blackbloods what would happen to them if they misbehaved. Or breathed incorrectly.
The head table, where the officers usually sat, was along the far left wall, elevated ten steps above the main floor. In the chair in the middle of the table was Lagertha, flanked by Papi and Fishy. They sat with their feet up on the table, swords in their laps, arms crossed in front of them. Behind Lag stood Wake and Tom. Dally couldn't see their hands, but she knew they held weapons and were ready if the Blackbloods got out of line. She smiled and surveyed the rest of the scene.
At the bottom of the steps, directly in front of them, stood Soldier and Matt, feet planted shoulder width apart, arms crossed in front of them, daggers in hand. On Soldier's right stood Gracie, and on Matt's left stood SpiderQueen. On the steps behind and to the right of Gracie sat Viseron and KayVee, both sharpening their daggers. To Spider's left sat James and Ruby. James dangled a mace in front of him and Ruby had her crossbow resting on her knees.
In the center of the room was another long table, with two smaller round tables on either side. At the table closest to the stairs sat Illy, Sailor and Redava, armed with daggers and pens and parchment, so they could record the meeting for the team archives. The other round table had Naryu, Wyndstryker, Ego and Slidraco sharpening more daggers. At the long table, at the left end sat Nevin, flanked on his left by Glam and on the right by Ehlek. The two seats next to Glam were empty, as were the five next to Ehlek. On the other side of the two empty seats were Afroze, Pep and Manu, with Shadowfax sitting at the end. No one at the long table seemed to be armed, but Dally doubted that was the case.
Dally looked at the wall to her right. Reaper, Coach, Simone, MissD, Schwesty, RGee, Neis, Onslaught, Longhunter, Lipton, PickJohn, LilPussinBoots, Kiono and NiceDevil lined the wall with arms at their sides, hands on their weapons, ready to pounce on the unwelcome guests like sharks on a wounded fish.
A horn sounded to announce the Blackblood's arrival. Obsi and Dally took their seats on the far side of the table. Reckless and BlackViper entered the hall, followed by the Blackbloods. The last to enter the hall were Incubus and Whiteraven, who barred the door behind them and blocked it, swords drawn.
It took every ounce of control Dally had not to giggle maniacally at the awesome display of force from her team.
Thorne, Laria, Deathclaw, Titan and Celia sheepishly took their seats. Titan looked angrily at Dallyah.
"Is all this really necessary?" he growled.
In an instant Ehlek had a dagger at Titan's throat.
"Yes," Nevin said matter-of-factly, "Yes it is." Ehlek put his dagger on the table in front of him.
"So what is it that you need, Dallyah?" Thorne asked carefully.
"Xander is raiding the temples of the Sacred Ridge. I am asking for your help in stopping them."
Celia looked concerned. "How do you know this?" she asked, not succeeding in her attempt to mask the anxiousness in her voice.
"I spoke to one of the Temple Guardians. She said they are looking for rare dragon eggs that do not exist."
Deathclaw sighed. "I'm not sure where he's getting these troops from, but Titan and I have been fending them off our bases. We can't spare anyone to help you at the moment."
"Same here," Thorne said. "I think he's hiring mercenaries to fight us."
"I'll go with you," Celia said. "My family is from that area. I may be able to help. I'll get my things and come back tomorrow."
"So, is that it? Can we go now?" Laria snarled.
Thorne rolled her eyes. "Yes, Laria, we can go." They stood. Thorne turned to face Lag. "Thank you, Lagertha, for your hospitality. I appreciate why you took the precautions you did, but I promise in the future they will not be necessary."
"Fly safe," Lag replied with a dismissive wave.
Obsi stood. "Oh Laria? Tell Slender and Xander to stay out of the Sacred Ridge, or else."
"Or else what?" Laria snapped.
"Or else I will give him the pleasure of knowing what his own entrails taste like," Obsi hissed.
​"Damn," Pep whispered with a grin.
Inc unbarred the door and opened it. He and Whiteraven escorted the Blackbloods to their waiting dragons.
Dally stood up on the table and shouted, "I FREAKING LOVE YOU GUYS!!!" The team cheered, and they celebrated for a few hours together. Dally, feeling a bit tipsy, went with Obsi to her room. On the guest bed was a package.
"Oh, I'm sorry I forgot to tell you that came for you from Suddene."
Dally picked up the note that was lying on top of the box. "Suddene is so relaxing! We've had time to socialize and even get back to our art! I hope you like this. Love, Soc"
Dally opened the package and found a painting of the most beautiful depiction of the Goddess Invidia, a summoned dragon rising from smoke behind her, her spear piercing a snake next to her. Obsi peeked over her shoulder and squealed.
"That is GORGEOUS!!!!" she yelled.
Dally grinned, tears filling her eyes. "Dammit I miss that man!"

The next morning, Dally and Saito headed out toward the second Mystic Temple. On the way, Saito told Dally about the guardian.
"Her name is Kamaitachi. She is the Guardian of the Mystic Spring Temple, and of spring itself. She is said to ride the spring wind itself to foil any mischievous deeds done by evil spirits or men. She arms herself with Shurikans and a Katana, and rumor has it, magic."
"Do you think she can help me figure out what the dream means?" Dally asked as they came upon a set of stairs carved into the hillside.
Saito nodded. "She will be able to confirm my suspicions."
Dally was taken aback. "You have suspicions? Why didn't you tell me?"
Saito chuckled. "Because I didn't want to tell you before they could be confirmed."
"Fair enough," Dally replied. 
At the top of the steps was a temple exactly like the one where Dally met Haku. Standing in front of the temple steps was Kamaitachi. She was tall, with long black hair that blended to white at the ends and was tied back in a pony tail and two braids. She wore a white robe edged with purple satin on her right side, her left side covered only in her armor. Her face was painted white, with purple adornments around her left eye. She warily watched them approach, muscles tensed to react if they stepped out of line.
"Greetings, Kamaitachi, Great Guardian of Spring," Saito called. "I am Saito, this is Dallyah, daughter of Jarod. We seek your counsel."
"Greetings, Saito. Greetings, Princess Dallyah," Kamaitachi replied. "What counsel do you seek?"
"Dallyah has received a vision from our mentor, Zafrek. The first part of the quest he has set for her is complete: she received an egg from Haku." Dally watched a very brief look of surprise cross the Guardian's face. "The second quest is also complete: she has conquered the Kaiji in the Nameless River."
"That is extremely impressive," Kamaitachi said to Dally. "I'm going to surmise that the next quest involves Ronin?"
"I believe so," Saito replied.
(Dally vaguely knew of the legend of Ronin, but did not want to ask for a refresher on it. She hoped she could play off that she remembered it all.)
Kamaitachi sighed. "Unfortunately, I am unable to help at the moment. Blackblood rogues have been raiding the Temples in search of rare dragon eggs."
"Blackbloods?" Dally asked, anger rising in her voice.
"Yes," Kamaitachi replied. "They believe we have rare eggs stored deep within the temples. For the record, we do not, they are just gold replicas."
"That fact won't stop them from raiding every last temple," Dally growled. She looked into Kamaitachi's eyes. "I respect the fact that you cannot help us. I will help you instead. I will see what I can do to run the Blackbloods out of the Misty Mountains."
Kamaitachi bowed to Dallyah. "That is much appreciated, Princess," she said respectfully.
"Thank you for seeing us," Saito said with a bow. "We will return soon." Dally also bowed and followed Saito down the stone steps and back to the cabin.
There were baskets of fruits, vegetables, meats, clothing and other gifts all over the porch and steps and spilling into the yard. There were also huge piles of mutton and venison outside the barn. Dally described what she was seeing to Saito.
"Where did all of this come from?" she asked, humbled almost to tears.
"Uh, hi, we brought this," a huge man said as he came around from the back of the house. He was built like a sumo, just huge everywhere, with his hair pulled back into a topknot. Another man followed him; tall and thin with long black hair, dressed in Samurai garb. "I am Kuma," the big man said, "and this is Hayai. We were protecting the nearby villages from Blackbloods and prowlers. When Saito told us of the Kaiji being pulled from the river by you, the villagers wanted to show you their appreciation."
"This...this....this is way too much!" Dally said, tears pouring down her cheeks.
Hayai laughed. "They are very humble people, and they tend to overdo gratitude. Not something we see very often. They did send meat for Haku and Kaiji as well."
Dally smiled. "I will have to go to the village soon and thank them for their generosity. And, to thank you two, since I seem to have potentially put you out of work, why don't stay here with us? There is more than enough room, and plenty to eat."
The men bowed. "We would be honored."
"Good," Saito said, "will you help me get the baskets inside? I feel rain coming."
As the men set to work, Dally whistled for Voron. He landed on her shoulder, and she grabbed a basket and took it inside, then pulled parchment and a quill out of a drawer and wrote to Obsi. She put the note on Voron's collar and sent him on his way.
"Going back to your base tomorrow?" Saito asked.
"Yes," Dally said, "I need to talk to my family."

Dally sat on the steps of the cabin as the sun rose, winding blue thread around two hollow sticks she'd found in an abandoned drawer. She knew the legend of the Kaiji, who were water spirit dragons that would drag those who got too close to the rivers they inhabited to their deaths. Saito wanted her to capture one. Or, as a nagging voice in the back of her mind kept saying, he was trying to get rid of her. Although, if he was, Haku would know his evil intentions and would act accordingly. She finished her trap, leaving several feet of thread hanging from it. She tied the string to her wrist and headed off toward the river.
She reached the river about an hour later. The river had no name; the locals did not name it in an attempt to keep people from seeking it out and being victims of Kaiji. Dally steeled herself, tied the trap to a nearby tree, and went to the edge of the water. She knelt down and waited.
The rising sun reflected on green scales and red transparent wings swimming beneath the water. Kaiji appeared, his jaws wide, blue eyes glowing. He looked at Dally, who showed no fear.
"Well," the dragon said, "you are a curious one! Come closer so you can see me better."
Dally kept a calm expression, even as her heart threatened to beat out of her chest. She leaned toward the water, and braced for what came next.
Kaiji lunged out of the water and pulled her under. She held her breath and made sure Kaiji saw the string around her wrist. Spirits had a compulsion to follow a string, and to her relief he released her to follow it. She swam to the surface and crawled onto the shore. Kaiji, who was smaller and ethereal out of the water, followed the string to the trap and was caught, stuck to the string and writhing to pull himself free. Dally sloshed her way over and picked the trap out of the tree by the wood. The dragon tried to bite her, but she laughed. Kaiji sighed and looked at Dally.
"What do you want with me, human?" he asked.
"If I let you go, are you going to try to kill me?" she asked.
Kaiji laughed. "I would not have to try. But, no, you have tricked me, and I respect that. But I ask again, what do you want with me?"
Dally sighed. "I need you to come to my camp with me. I have Haku, and now Saito said I need you..."
Kaiji's eyes widened. "You have Haku?" he asked in disbelief.
"Well, a Haku, not THE Haku."
"You are going after Ronin, then?" Kaiji asked.
"I think so," Dally replied, pulling the string and releasing Kaiji. He flew upwards, so that when he returned to his true size he did not injure her. He landed next to her and crouched down so that she could climb onto his back. She guided him in the direction of the cabin.
Saito heard them land and exited the cabin. He stood motionless in the doorway for a moment.
"You did it," he whispered.
"Of course she did," Kaiji replied angrily. "After getting Haku, I was a breeze."
Dally jumped onto the ground. "Kaiji, this is Saito. Saito, Kaiji."
Saito walked over to Kaiji who bent his head down to the blind Samurai. Saito ran his fingers along Kaiji's jaw and produced a key, which he tossed to Dally.
"Now," he said, "you must go to the second temple. But first, I will go to the village and let them know the river is safe."
He patted Kaiji's cheek and headed off toward the village. Dally took Kaiji into the stable, where he and Haku warily watched each other for a few minutes, then settled down to nap. Dally smiled, then went into to the cabin and change into dry clothes and nap herself.

Dally muttered under her breath as she climbed the path up the mountain to the first shrine. The Sacred Ridge looked beautiful as the sun rose, but the path was a brutal climb almost straight up for almost a kilometer. Once she reached the top of the trail, she emerged in front of the Temple. The temple was simply designed, with a life size statue of the dragon Haku in front of the steps. She approached slowly, looking around for looters or monks or anything that might try to surprise her. Nothing did. When she reached the statue, she read the plaque on the front of the pedestal:
If you have made it this far, you are pure of heart
To find the Guardian, tell Haku your purpose
If the Guardian does not appear, your wish will not be granted
Speak truthfully, chose your words wisely and make haste
Dally took a deep breath. "My purpose is...well...I don't really know. My mentor told me in a dream to save a dragon and a rider by finding keys. I don't know what that means. A Samurai named Saito told me to come here, and I did. "
She stepped back and held her breath, expecting nothing to happen. To her surprise, a cloaked figure came slowly out of the temple and descended the stairs. The hood of the cloak masked the person's face and covered their body entirely, including their feet. The person stopped in front of Dally, and raised their head. The facial features seemed to be female.
"Haku knows of your dream and your journey. This is the beginning, Dallyah, daughter of Jarod. Take the first step. Call your dragon."
Dally was confused, but she obeyed. She mentally called to Noctua, something she had never done before with any dragon, and within seconds she heard his cry. Noc landed behind her, and bowed his head to the statue of Haku.
The hooded figure reached up and touched the statue. "You have conquered Necryx, the evil creation of the necromancer Kharnyx. Your sister has rescued Gunnar, the unfortunate tool of Gustav's misdeeds. These are great feats indeed, but they are child's play compared to what you are capable of. I invoke the judgement of Haku to determine your next step."
The woman's eyes began to glow, as did the statue. Haku came to life, stood on his hind legs and spread his wings. He took off into the sky, flew over the temple and returned clutching something in his talons.
It was an egg.
Haku set the egg in front of Noctua and returned to the pedestal.
"Haku has entrusted you with one of his eggs. He knows you will care for his offspring. This dragon will help you in your quest. Take it home, hatch it, and continue your quest." The hooded guardian returned to the temple, and the dragon returned to its statuesque state. Dazed, Dally climbed onto Noctua's back. Noc picked up the egg and flew carefully back to Dally's base. Noc placed the egg carefully into the empty incubator, and the Druids hastily worked their magic to light the magic fire to hatch the egg. Dally told Druid Krieger about her experience and he smiled.
"You really are something special, Dragon Lord Dallyah," he exclaimed proudly.
Just then, the young Haku burst from the egg and flew high over the base. He circled several times before landing in front of Dally. She made a fuss over her new dragon, then climbed on his back and took off toward Zafrek's cabin.
Saito exited the cabin as they landed. He smiled.
"You passed the first test," he said. "Tomorrow is the next test; Kaiji."

"OW!" Dally said as she pushed herself up and rolled over to face her attacker. He was tall, dark-skinned, dressed in Samurai robes with a white bandage across his eyes. He stood perfectly still, his fist still outstretched from hitting her on the back of the head.
"Who are you?" he demanded.
"I should ask you the same thing," Dally growled, slowly rising to her feet. "This is my mentor's former home. You are obviously not living here, so this is my domain. Who are you?"
"I asked first," the Samurai replied, still not moving.
"You cannot see me, can you?" she asked slowly.
"What was your first clue?" the man replied sarcastically.
Dally sighed, exasperated. "Ok, let's start this again. I am Dallyah. Who are you?"
The man lowered his arm. "Dallyah? As in the King's daughter?"
Dally sighed again. "Yes, for the sake of speeding this conversation up." He cocked his head to the side in a questioning manner. "The King is dead, blah, blah, blah..." He smiled and relaxed his stance. "Now, who are you?"
"I am Saito. I was a student of Zafrek's, before and after you."
"Ok, so what happened to him? And why are you here now?"
Saito sighed. As he opened his mouth to speak, a dragon's roar was heard off in the distance. They turned in unison toward the mountains and listened. The roar came again, and Dally said, "Whoa, maybe we should go inside?" Saito nodded and walked effortlessly into the house. He sat in a chair by the fireplace while Dally hastily set to lighting one. Once the fire was lit, he continued.
"I do not know what happened to Zafrek. About six months after you left, I came to see him. I stayed for about a year, then set out on my own again for six months. When I came to see him, he was gone. I've come back once a month ever since to see if he has returned."
"So today just happens to be one of those visits?" Dally asked cautiously.
"No," Saito replied with a laugh. "Last night I had a dream where Zafrek told me to come here, that I would need to protect something. I assumed it was his home, but now I believe he meant you."
"Then he's alive. There is no way he could be annoying both of us if he's not." Dally told Saito of her dream. 
Saito nodded as she spoke, then raised his hand as she finished. "I believe I know what he means by the keys. You must pass three trials, that he has set forth for 'the right student'. You will need to go to one of the Mystic Mountain Temples."
"Can you take me?" she asked hopefully.
"Yes, but first you must pass the first trial."
"And what might that be? He never spoke to me about any of this." Her frustration was showing in her voice.
Saito chuckled. "Calm yourself, little one," he said in an almost perfect imitation of Zafrek's voice. "If he didn't tell you it is because he meant for you to be the one."
"If it were anyone else we were talking about, I'd say that makes no sense. But Zaf was like that, old coot." She sighed. "So, Saito, what is the first test?"
"You must go to the first temple at the base of the mountains and face Haku."
"Haku? The dragon from the Temple Legends?"
"The same. Once you return successfully from the temple, I will take you to the second temple."
"How will I know if I was successful?"
Saito stood and smiled. "You will not. I will."

Dally woke to the sound of Zafrek making breakfast. The smell of bacon wafted through the cabin at the base of the Sacred Ridge. She and Draco had been staying here with the hermit for two months now, ever since he found them sleeping in the rain, Draco sheltering Dally with his wings, in a nearby field. "Come stay with me, child" he said. When she tried to politely refuse, he said, "Oh come now, I know who you are! Out of loyalty to my King, I will not let his eldest daughter and her prize dragon sleep in the rain!" They had done chores to earn their keep, and Zafrek had begun to teach Dally what he knew about being a Dragon Lord, which came only from books. But, it was still very useful to her.
She sat up in bed, and Zafrek brought a plate over to her. Instead of eggs and bacon, there were three round keys. She looked up at Zafrek with a frown.
"You will need these," he said, his kind brown eyes turning red. "Find the keys. Find the rider. Heal the dragon. This is what you must do!" He disappeared in a puff of thick black smoke, and through the haze she saw glowing blue eyes...
Dally sat up with a start. The dream had been so real to her, that she looked around her chamber for several minutes until she realized it was just a dream. She sighed. She hadn't thought about Zafrek since she'd started building her own base. He had been so kind, then suddenly became very angry and took it out on her. She refused to be treated that way, and was very hurt by his change in attitude towards her. When Ash sent for her, she left without saying goodbye; she'd just left a note saying, "I will miss you".
The dream meant she had to go back.
Dally sighed, got up and began to pack. The Sacred Ridge was an entire days' journey by dragon, and she needed to leave as soon as possible if she wanted to reach Zafrek's cabin by dark. She put on her cloak, threw her bag over her shoulder and headed to the meeting hall. She pulled Timur and Druid Kreiger aside and told them about her dream.
"It was just a dream," Timur said sourly.
The Druid shook his head. "No, it was not. It was a sign...or a message...doesn't matter what. My point is she needs to go."
Timur shrugged. "I'm not much for this mystical mumbo jumbo. But, if you feel that strongly about it, go. Take Voron with you so you can reach out if you need help. What dragon do you want to take?"
Dally thought for a moment. "My gut reaction is to say Draco, but he's not strong enough. I'll take Noctua. I'm going to go see Draco though before I go."
The men nodded, and Timur walked to the Dragons Den with her. He went to get Noc ready for travel, and she went to see her baby. Draco was her first dragon, he traveled with her and protected her for ten years. He was her best friend. She took him out just to fly every day she was on the base. Draco heard her footsteps and poked his nose out of his stall. Dally laughed and kissed his snout.
"There's my good boy," she said as she opened the stall door. He went to the back wall and lay down, back against the wall, so she could lay against his chest.
"I'm going back to the Sacred Ridge," she said.
Draco groaned.
"I know, I know, but I had a dream. Or a vision, or whatever you want to call it. Zaf said I need keys to find a rider and heal a dragon."
Draco huffed.
"I don't know what it means either, but I have to go. Will you keep the base and the others safe while I'm gone?"
Draco gently rubbed his massive cheek against her. Yes.
Dally got up and kissed his snout again. "I'll be back soon. I love you." She walked quickly out of the stall and out of the den to avoid the tears that were welling in her eyes. Timur helped her up onto Noctua's back, handed her three bags of supplies and her bag, and waved as they took off toward the Sacred Ridge. They arrived at Zafrek's cabin just as the sun set.
It was deserted.
Dally could tell by the growth of the weeds and the deterioration of the house and stable that it had been deserted for years. Probably, since right after she left. She sighed, and set about clearing the barn to make room for Noctua. The barn could hold three dragons, and had been shut tight enough that not much needed to be done inside. Once Noc was settled, she headed over to the house. Off in the distance she saw a golden dragon flying against the light of the rising moon. It passed closer, and she saw it had blue eyes. Her eyes widened, then closed from the force of someone hitting her from behind.

When Dally returned home, she slept for almost a day. She woke to a knock on her door. It was Timur.
"Dragon Lord," he said with a bow, "I hate to disturb you, but a gift has arrived for you."
"From who?" she asked with a yawn.
"Jarl," he replied.
"Uh...really?"
"Yes, really. Meet me out on the base when you're ready," he said as he closed the door behind him.
Dally sighed, got bathed and dressed, and went out onto the base. Timur led her to the incubator, where an egg had been placed in the incubator. Druid Kreiger held a parchment, which he
handed to her as she approached.
"Princess Dallyah,
I wanted to give this to your sister, but she thought it was better suited for you. I have been wanting to give one of my dormant eggs to someone I felt was worthy, but until I met the
two of you I hadn't. Please raise and take care of this dragon as it deserves to be; as you raise and take care of all of your dragons; as if they were your own children. As it should be.
As we should all take care of one another.
I sincerely hope this world learns this lesson from you and your sister. You are special far beyond your gift to talk to and understand dragons. I hope some day you both realize that.
Thank you for your part in the events these last days. You and your sister are part of the Red Raiders.
Jarl"
Dally's eyes filled with tears as she looked up from the parchment and watched the Druids ignite the Flame of Life. She smiled at Druid Krieger, and walked back to her chamber in a daze.
When she opened her door, on her table was another gift. A book. On top of the book was another parchment.
"Princess Dallyah,
I have three copies of this book. I've sent this one to you, and one to your sister, as a small token of my gratitude. Thanks to the two of you, and Bjorn as well, the Muspell can truly
live in peace without fear of reprisal from the Raiders. There is nothing in the universe to measure the worth of that peace, but I hope this book demonstrates at least a small amount
of what this means to me, to us. You are welcome to visit us at any time, and if you ever need us, just call.
Yours,
Nurlan"
Dally looked at the thick, leather-bound book. The title "Book of Legends" was written in gold script. She opened it carefully, and the page she opened to was titled "The Misty Mountains". She read the story about Ronin, a warrior dragon whose beloved rider was killed and prowled the Misty Mountains seeking an opponent to best him and send him to once again be with his lost rider. The only problem with this plan was that Ronin never backed down.
Neither did Dally.
She smiled. "Well, Ronin, maybe a death match isn't what you need. Perhaps, you just need a new purpose. As do I."

​
Obsi and Bjorn returned to her base and she slept for a day and a half. When she woke, she bathed, dressed and went to see Druid Tim.
"Ah, there she is!" he said, smiling broadly. "I need to talk to you about this breeding event."
Obsi narrowed her eyes. "What about this breeding event?"
"Well...the next dragon the Breeding Master has on the path for us is Frostbiter, as you know."
"Uh huh..."
"And the token cost for Frost is, well, rather high."
"Uh huh..."
"And, so, well to be frank we do not currently have enough tokens and fragments to finish."
"How much do we have?" Obsi asked cautiously.
"About half," the Druid replied.
Obsi winced. "Ok, well, we just have to get moving on the token runs."
"New season will begin this week as well," Druid Tim reminded her.
Obsi nodded. "Token bonus will need to be renewed."
"We didn't get it this time," Druid Tim said out of the corner of his mouth.
"Wait, what? Oh, yeah we didn't. Well, at least we won't miss it when it expires."
"That's one way to look at it," Druid Tim laughed.
Obsi nodded. "Apophet is next; and that is more expensive yet. We will need to get that token bonus right away."
"We do have several dozen chests to open this event as well. Not what most would consider a lot, mind you, but for us it's more than normal."
"Good," Obsi said. "I'm going to go do some token runs. We'll see how it pans out."
"Take the event as it comes," the Druid agreed. "Make sure you dress warm, Dragon Lord, there is snow coming."
Obsi groaned. "Can the PG bring us ACTUAL spring with the new season?"
Druid Tim laughed. "We can dream, Dragon Lord, we can dream."

They landed on Neutral Beach, which was just a few kilometers from Jarl's fortress. Jarl stood near the tree line, surrounded by Havardr and several dozen soldiers. Nurlan jumped off of Surt's back, and as soon as his feet hit the sand the rest that were with him did the same. Blackblood dragons circled overhead.
Time to put on the show, Jarl thought.
Jarl let out a deafening roar and stomped his massive feet. Nurlan drew his sword, and both he and Jarl started forward.
"STOP!" Obsi shouted, placing herself in between the two.
The Blackbloods landed on the far left edge of the beach. Xander approached, cocky smile plastered on his face, followed by his people.
"Well, well, well," he said mockingly. "Is little Obsi afraid of a little confrontation? Going to go hide like you did when you were little? Well, smaller anyway."
"Shut your mouth before I knock that stupid smile off of your equally stupid face," Obsi said through her teeth.
Xander laughed. "You are the stupid one, Obsidian. The Muspell want their land back. Their land is what the Red Raiders have claimed. Just stand back and watch the melee."
Jarl and Nurlan both started forward.
"NO!" Obsi screamed.
"Oh you foolish girl," Xander sang. "Blackbloods, get her!"
Arden, Spiculus and Slender started forward. Celia, Laria and Thorn blocked their way, swords drawn. Deathclaw and Titan moved behind them.
The smile on Xander's face turned to pure rage. "You fools!" he screamed.
"You are the fool, Xander," Nurlan said, lowering his sword. "Yes, the land Jarl has was once mine. We wanted peace, he wanted us to help him with war. This put us at odds. But, my friend, you will not. My people live a peaceful life on our island. We are happy there. I have no reason to want this land back."
"And I have no reason to hunt the Muspell, given what Nurlan has just declared," Jarl said, advancing slowly. "Nurlan, I'd like to make this peace official, but I have one condition."
Nurlan looked at him quizzically. "If we need you, would you back us in war?"
Nurlan laughed. "If you need us, yes. And you may, if these fools get their way," he said, pointing to the Blackbloods.
"Oh we will," Xander said, backing slowly toward Skarr. "Mark my words!" Skarr roared, momentarily throwing everyone off balance. Arden grabbed Spiculus and Slender by the arm and ran back toward their dragons. They managed to take off before being apprehended.
Bjorn burst into a fit of laughter as Titan and the other remaining Blackbloods approached. "You five are one heck of a team," he said.
Titan shrugged. "Yes, but now they know we're not with them. No more element of surprise."
"I wouldn't say that," Obsi said with a wink.
Jarl cleared his throat. "Obsidian, a word, please?"
Obsi walked slowly over to Jarl, who beckoned her to follow him to the back of the beach. He spoke to her in a low tone. She nodded, then her eyes widened.
"Oh Jarl, that is just...well...thank you! But I think that might suit my sister better, if it's all the same to you."
Jarl chuckled. "All right then. I'll owe you a favor instead."
"That would be the favor," she replied.
"Well, we will see about that," Jarl laughed.
They walked back to the others, and found the Muspell mixed with the Raiders, laughing and talking like old friends. Obsi smiled.
Dally approached them. "Ok Obsi, are you ready to go home?"
Obsi nodded. "Yes, but I would like to ride the double dragon first!"
Nurlan laughed. "Twist and Shout? Yes, I think we can give that a go!"