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Opallio lay on her outcrop, overlooking the cavern before her with lidded eyes. The open roof above her allowed a pillar of light to fall through, illuminating the green shrubs and plants that managed to grow from the rocky walls and hardened soil, and shining upon her crystal scales, showing all the glory of her species. The cavern was not a large one, or at least not as large as the one back in the earthen nation, but it still was about twenty dragon lengths in width and double that high. Her outcrop was near the top, closer to the roof of the cavern, neatly flattened and carved after millennia of use. Behind her, it led into a small tunnel that she knew exited from the current mountain she was in and into the outside world.

Dotting the walls around it were eighteen other outcrops, all empty, each as smoothed and warn as her own with a tunnel leading away from them. As usual, Opallio was the first to arrive. She liked it that way. It meant she could observe and document when everyone else came in. It meant that no secret conversations could be had between the dragons that did arrive early without her being present for them. She always enjoyed those conversations. With a soft sigh, she allowed herself to fall into a light doze. She knew that this council would be an interesting one, as for the first time in near a century there was a new member.

The first to arrive, after her of course, were the two dragons that represented the elements of the sky. Ingun the ice drake, as representative of his species, with frigid blue, nearly white scales and a frill of horns, and his queen Polliar, the wind dragoness, with creamy white scales and wings that even folded up expanded nearly the length of her body, standing in for her own species. They, of course, arrived together, as they usually did. Polliar gave Opallio a friendly nod of greeting, which the crystal dragoness returned. Opallio had always though Polliar was a good ruler of her kin, soft-spoken and quietly powerful. Ingun however was a fair bit louder and was often one of the greater voices within the council.

From there the other species began trickling in. Lumiane was next, king of the light dragons, with radiant golden scales and translucent wings, and a power that radiated from him like a beam of light. Tuden came next, representing the life dragons, emerald green scales, and a scar across his snout. Forrice was soon after, the gravity dragoness, her long horns, creamy blue scales, and massive size nearly making her too big for her outcrop. Opallio's own king appeared from below her, Strager the metal drake, with his silvery shell shimmering and reflecting the light, and the golden scales on his torso and legs glimmering in the same way. Garner followed, appearing beside her and giving her a small smile, the earth drake with his marsh green scales, brown underbelly and massive size that was too big for the outcrop, forced to lay part of his body in the tunnel he had just came out from.

Siedon appeared, king of the water-based dragons and the oldest ruler of them all. His deep blue scales still radiated the ocean and piercing eyes showed ancient wisdom. Zagen the acid drake followed, with his dark green scales and poisonous tale tip, he held himself as the representative of the acid dragons, who then fell under Siedon as king. After them, the rest of the mental species seemed to arrive all at once. Zay'ues, the drake that represented the weather dragons, with a large body and blue scales swamped with green, quite often a jovial dragon. There was Eledior of the spirit dragons, her white scales, and mysterious aura giving nothing away but calm confidence. She rarely spoke, and when she did, she gave nothing away. The mystery of her species made each of them slightly uneasy around her. Talon the telekinetic drake appeared after her, his calm hazel scales like large plates along his body and the small stones on his outcrop seemed to levitate under his power. Finally, Laywil arrived, the mind drake who was king of all the mental species, ruling alongside his mate Vanilier, his cream blue scales and silently powerful aura gaining instant attention from the others in the room. Opallio smile slightly when she saw him. It was always quite the game to guess which of the two ruling mind dragons would show up to the council, as the rules only allowed one of each species to be present.

The last of the species began to arrive. Ender, king of the shadow dragons, with pitch-black scales and glowing yellow eyes, who sent a dark look at Lumiane on the other side of the cavern. Joy'el, who represented the lightning dragons, her sparkling yellow scales and fierce snapping teeth turning to a grin as she entered. Agonel, who represented the chaos dragons, a large dragon nearly the size Garner, with dark red scales and black spikes running down his back. Then Dansion arrived as, instead of walking from his tunnel, he stepped through a portal that radiated nothingness. He was the representative of the rift dragons, with purple scales and six horns. That left one still to arrive.

All eyes turned to the remaining empty outcropping. There was one question on everyone's mind. Opallio did not need to be a mind reader to know what it was. Would she come? It had been a long time since a species had missed the council, and with her first decade as queen, it would not look well for her if she wilfully forgot its existence. But their worry was for naught.

A blast of heat radiated from within the final tunnel as the queen of fire revealed herself. Athaer's aura overwhelmed the room, as though fire was in the very air, as though she were pulling herself into the power of equilibrium. But the dragoness instead only lay down on her outcropping, her ruby red scales glinting in the light as she looked upon each of the represented species with muted curiosity.

Opallio narrowed her eyes as she studied the fire queen. It was the first time she had seen her in person. It was likely the first for many of them, besides Agonel and Joy'el, who fell under her rule. The rumours that had spread about the dragoness were terrifying and awe-inspiring. Rumours that had made many of them nervous as to what to expect from her. But, besides her obvious power, Opallio saw an ordinary fire dragon, young, possibly inexperienced in the ways of ruling a nation, but with a strong determination, one that overshadowed them all. She could tell by the way the fire dragon held herself, head high and unflinching under the curious gazes of the most powerful members of the other species. There was no fear to be found in her gaze. Perhaps that was ignorance, perhaps it was bravery, or perhaps she was simply hiding what she felt behind her own power.

"Well, now that everyone is here, shall we begin?" Laywil spoke up, the mind dragon usually the first to begin talking.

There was a mumble of agreement around the cavern.

"But first," Strager said, "Athaer, we understand you are a powerful dragon, but there is no need to show it off by holding yourself so close to equilibrium."

The fire dragoness tilted her head, slightly amused by the comment, "I don't know what you mean?"

"The aura you are letting off, you are holding yourself close to equilibrium," the metal king continued with the murmured agreement of a couple of the other species.

"I apologise," Athaer said, "But I am not doing what you say. The 'aura' you speak of... that is how it is all the time."

The cavern grew rather still at her announcement. Opallio frowned. She knew that to hold such power in the air one had to be letting the power of equilibrium leak into their body. To keep it back from overwhelming them and making the full transformation took incredible control and tenacity, especially for long periods of time. She had never heard of it being simply the natural resting state for a dragon. The closest to it among them was Lumiane, and Opallio had always considered the light king to be the most powerful of them all... at least in terms of raw power.

It was a game the crystal dragon liked to play whenever the leaders of each species met together. Who was the strongest and most dangerous among them? It usually came down to five. She always considered Laywil and his mate as equal in the first place, then Lumiane a close second. Afterwards, it was always difficult. Siedon was always an option. He had held his post for the longest. Eledior was certainly a contender, but Opallio knew so little about the spirit dragon that she could never be sure. Ender was strong of course, and a good leader, but his hatred of Lumiane had always prevented him from making that list in her mind. Strager had to be one of them as well, being the king of the largest dragon nation of the planet. But now there was Athaer, who's statement echoed a boast of power that did not seem entirely inaccurate. From this simple interaction alone Opallio was willing to put the fire dragon within the top five, a placement that her predecessor never achieved.

"If what you say is true then I take back my accusation," Strager was slightly stumped.

Athaer simply nodded her head, not saying anymore on the matter. It seemed she would rather take this first meeting of the species in quiet observation.

"Now," Lumiane rumbled, "If that is over with, I would like to start this council by revisiting its purpose, not only for the sake of our newest member, but it seems that... some may have forgotten."

Siedon laughed, his heavy voice echoing through the chamber, "Then I guess I shall do the honour. Athaer, you may know this already... and whoever else Lumiane is referring to, but the Council of Species is a place of peace. A meeting once a decade where one representative of each species meets to discuss the matters of the land. Here we hold each other accountable for actions of the past ten years, and we work together to resolve these issues."

"Thank you Siedon," the light king nodded his head, "Then I would like to bring forth my first issue of the day. Ender, perhaps you would like to explain why I was attacked on the way here by an elite force of shadow dragons."

Opallio was slightly startled by the claim. Sure, the amnesty between the light and shadow dragons was well known throughout the world, but surely even Ender would not jeopardize the peace councils so openly. To his credit, however, the shadow drake looked nearly as surprised as the rest of the council.

"I do not know what you mean," he said, "If you were attacked, it was not under my orders."

"Can you explain what happened then?" Lumiane growled.

"As hard as it is for you to believe, Lumiane," Ender replied, "I am not the only one who ha... dislikes your race. There would certainly be others that would lash out if given the opportunity. Maybe they thought this was their opportunity."

"Well, they were wrong. I killed them all, one of which was a dragon of equilibrium," snarled the light king angrily, "You expect me to believe that you had nothing to do with it."

"He is speaking the truth Lumiane," Laywil said, shutting off the light drake, "However, Ender, I would like to impress the importance of a peace council. Something you need to help your subjects understand. Despite your dislike for each other, you are responsible for helping keep that peace during this time."

"I will rule how I wish," Ender growled at the mind drake, "I allow my subjects to make their own choices. If that happens to lead them to kill my enemy so be it. That is the way it is."

"I'll tell you what it is," Lumiane roared, "It's grounds for war!"

Opallio sighed as a commotion of roaring, growling, and yelling broke through the council. As much of a peace council as it was... dragons did a good job at assaulting each other, even if it was just with words and noises. Now she just had to wait until...

'Everyone, calm down!' Laywil's mental voice punctured through the chaos, silence following. The mind dragon continued out loud, "We deal with this every council. You are all elders and representatives of your race. You are the ones responsible for their shortcomings and victories. If they make a mistake, you assume responsibility and you try and fix it. However, that does not mean we go to war over it. Now settle down. You are both acting like hatchlings."

Both elder drakes narrowed their eyes at the insult, but they took the reprimand. Opallio noted Athaer's surprised frown at how easily they were pacified. Laywil had a lot of sway behind the council, as did his mate. Being mind dragons they could quite easily find the deepest secrets of everyone's mind and use those secrets. The ability to find truth in a lie was one of the most powerful things on the planet. It was why they were the king and queen of all the mental species, and the reason why they were held in such high regard by the others.

"Now, Ender, you will take responsibility for the attack on Lumiane. We cannot afford another war between your species," Laywil continued, "However, if everyone is in agreement with me, the punishment has already been dealt in the death of the dragons that chose to attack Lumiane."

"As long as it doesn't happen again," the light dragon snorted, still agitated.

"Very well," Ender rumbled, laying down with a huff, though his brooding eyes glared at the light drake.

The whole incident reminded Opallio of a father telling off his two sons, which was strange since both Ender and Lumiane were older than Laywil by several decades. But a mind dragon lived many lives and had the wisdom of those many lives. Despite how dangerous Laywil was, Opallio doubted the peace would have lasted as long without him. It was only Lumiane and Ender's respect of the mind drake that allowed them to listen to his advice.

"Let us continue," Strager rumbled, "I would like to issue a warning. Recently our court has exiled a dragon for experimenting on element stones. An earth dragon by the name of Zyal. We do not know his whereabouts now but be wary of him as he is quite strong."

"What would be his capabilities exactly?" Polliar, queen of wind, asked, "I am only asking as something of note has happened close to the border of our nation. Several years ago now the largest mountain range I have ever seen rose from the ground, between the border of Ender's land and my own."

"Aah yes, that was something I was hoping to bring up as well," Ender said, looking at the dragoness, "It was like the entire kingdom shook when it happened. We thought we were under attack."

Opallio found her chance to speak, "Zyal was a strong dragon, but I do not think he was capable of such a thing. Not when he was with us anyway."

"Maybe Gaia has something to do with it?" Garner questioned.

"Maybe," agreed Polliar, "But rarely does the earth move so violently."

"I do not think it is Gaia," Dansion said, "Several rift dragons have attempted to explore the new mountains... and only one escaped. From that report, it seemed as though the mountains themselves are alive... and very hostile."

"None of my wind or ice dragons have come back from their escapades into the mountains either," sighed Polliar.

"I may be able to help tare them down if that is what you wish," Talon, the telekinetic dragon spoke for the first time.

"I think if we tried to then we may anger whatever created them," Polliar replied.

"We are some of the most powerful dragons in the world," snorted Talon, "I doubt whatever it is would be able to stop us."

"And if it is an awakened Gaia?" Ender grunted, "Not even we would stand against her."

"The elements have never been hostile before. I don't see why they would start now," the telekinetic drake grunted.

"I will talk to the Element Sage," Laywil said, "He may know if the seven elements had anything to do with it."

"Thank you," Polliar bobbed her head, "Until then I advise that we stay away from the mountains."

So, the meeting continued. There were the usual problems that arose. Trade between the races. Who had access to what livestock, which the life dragons were in control of. The migration routes of the large fish that many of the coastal dragons enjoyed. Siedon warned of a large pod of sea serpents that had been raiding the outskirts of his underwater cities. Apparently, they had developed a taste of dragon flesh.

Throughout it all Opallio noticed Athaer was rather silent, only talking when the questions directly related to her own nation or to herself. She made no offer to help, nor asked for any. No effort to gain the approval of the other species. Nothing diplomatic in any way. One could suspect nervousness or anxiety... but those were not the typical aspects of a ruler of a nation, and they were not something that Athaer really showed either. If anything, she seemed entirely calm, simply studying the conversation, listening, but not really giving anything away.

The talks lasted most of the day. They were occasionally thrown out of control, but Laywil always managed to reign them in. Opallio enjoyed these moments. Very rarely did the leaders of each nation meet to talk to each other. It gave them all a sense of comradery that allowed peace to continue throughout the Earth. There were enemies among them of course, many much more subtle then Lumiane and Ender. Amnesty that still held from the ashen wars several hundred years previously, which had split the nation in two. Opallio remembered them well. It was the reason the Council of Species had been created in the first place. But these hidden grudges rarely rose their head during the council meetings.

It appeared everything had been sorted out for another decade when Eledior suddenly spoke up, the spirit dragon's voice echoing as though multiple dragons were speaking at once.

"Before we finish, I would like to bring forward something that has been worrying me for some time," when the spirit dragon spoke everyone fell silent, looking at her startled. Rarely did she have anything to say.

"What is this worry Eledior?" Siedon asked.

"Well... I do not mean to be accusatory. They are only rumours that have reached me," the dragoness began, "But Athaer, I would like you to put my heart at rest, I have heard that you have been harvesting element stones. Is this true?"

A murmuring gasp swept through the room. Even Opallio felt herself freeze in horror, wondering what had possessed the spirit dragon to ask such a question. The fire queen held her relaxed posture, though she narrowed her eyes at the spirit dragoness in both suspicion and contempt. It was the first measure of emotion Opallio had seen in the dragoness, an anger so deep that for but a moment it burned in her eyes.

"What makes you say that Eledior?" Athaer questioned the spirit dragon, and rightfully so.

"Just what I have heard," Eledior spoke diplomatically, "I assure you I only ask because I wanted to be sure you weren't."

"Well, cannot Laywil read my mind and find out?" Athaer looked at the mind dragon.

Laywil frowned for a moment, furrowing his snout in concentration, "I... no? No, no she isn't."

The mind drake's hesitation at the answer confused Opallio. There were techniques one could master that could block a mind dragon's mental probe. But to be able to stop Laywil it would require an exceptionally disciplined mentality. A fortitude that Opallio had yet to see in any dragon she had met.

"There is your answer," Athaer said to the spirit dragon, a soft accusation in her own voice.

"Oh, I was just making sure," Eledior was no more convinced of the answer than Opallio was, "We all know how dangerous they can be."

"Perhaps the rumours came from a dragon I did find with element stones," Athaer said, "I had him executed and the stones dumped in the ocean. Maybe whoever started the rumour saw my soldiers with them, flying toward the ocean."

"Perhaps," Eledior nodded her head, her disagreement well hidden in her tone of voice.

Opallio's suspicion of the red dragoness rose. It seemed Athaer wasn't as naïve a ruler as she first believed. If she had indeed started collecting element stones and was able to block Laywil's mental probe... then she was a dragon to look out for.

"Alright! Enough with that!" Siedon roared out, "I am tired, and it is a long flight back to my kingdom. I wish you all well."

With a ruffled grunt, he turned around and walked back into his tunnel, not waiting for anyone else to agree. Athaer followed his lead, giving a nod to the rest of the dragons in the cavern before exiting through her own tunnel. One by one the dragons began to leave until it was only Opallio and Eledior that remained.

The crystal dragoness looked down at Eledior, slightly surprised that she was still there, "Is there something you wanted to say?"

"I think we should be wary of our new queen," Eledior said softly, "Very few dragons I have met have been able to block information from Laywil."

"And you are telling me this why?" Opallio questioned.

"Because you are the only one who seemed to find Laywil's hesitation confusing. I assure you, I have it from an infallible source that says Athaer is guilty of harvesting the stones," Eledior said.

"And you didn't say this in the council meeting why?"

"Because if I did my source would be in danger. I also wanted to give the queen a chance to admit it. A test if you will. Now, however, I do not think she wishes well to have hidden it from us."

"Maybe," Opallio agreed, looking at the empty outcrop where Athaer had been standing, "But she is new to her position. Perhaps we can influence her another way."

"Perhaps," Eledior spoke with the same disbelieving tone as before.

Opallio turned around, "I will see you in a decade."

"I guess I will," responded the spirit dragon.

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Hello all! Thank you for reading this story. I hope you enjoyed it. Vote if you did and comment on what you thought. This was a difficult story to get flowing as there were so many characters. Talking about those characters, who was the most interesting to you and who would you like to see a story from? I plan to do a piece for each of them at one point or another XD Anyway, back to the more prevalent stories, which one would you all like next?

The Element Sage: Ruban, the Water Drake - 11Yrs BTA

Mother of Dragons: Anastasia, human woman - 30Yrs BTA

Living Mountains: Aerial, wind dragoness - 39 Yrs BTA

Blinding Light: Kibre, Light Drake - 21Yrs BTA

Vote on which one you would like. Next one will be up around this time next week. See Ya!

Pennator^^