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"And for the final battle of tonight... well, you all know him. He's fast! He's strong! He remains near the top of the leader boards with a close to one hundred percent success rate! He's the shining star! The metal prodigy! I give you... Kyral, the Steel Dancer!"

Kyral took a deep breath as he began to walk forward. His claws sunk into the soft and beaten sand. The silver shell on his shimmered and rippled in the light. The pale-yellow scales of his legs and underbelly had been polished to near golden, highlighting the many scars on his limbs and neck. The metal covering his folded wings chimed softly as he slowly opened them with a grin, reveling in the roar of the crowd as it washed down into the entry tunnel.

As he walked out into the light the roaring only grew greater, escalating the excitement roiling around inside him. He reared on his hind legs, letting out his only metallic roar that sounded like a gong echoing again and again. The arena before him welcomed him with the scent of freshly spilled blood. The brown sand was tousled and messy, evidence of the previous battle. The steel and stone walls surrounding the arena were rugged and cracked with evidence of powerful elemental attacks in several small boulders, as well as dragon steel and shards of opal-like crystal scattered in the sand.

Atop the wall were hundreds of spectators. The shining metal shells of other metal dragons. The dark green and brown of earth dragons. The opal glimmer of crystal dragons. There was even the dark ocean blue of several water dragons visiting the earthen nation. There were also several hired life dragons that made it a lot easier to heal any serious injuries... if they made it in time. As he looked upon the cheering and roaring crowd Kyral closed his eyes, allowing himself to bask in their attention for but a moment. The thrum of his beating heart, the rush of adrenaline, the preparation for battle. It made him feel alive.

"And tonight, Kyral faces not one, not two, but six other dragons, all of which are fighting for a reward of one thousand ounces of gold! The only thing standing in their way is our competitor. Let us see if tonight he is able to uphold his title, and face down these challengers," the announcer continued, speaking through a long trumpet built by human hands, allowing his voice to echo through the thronging crowd.

Behind Kyral a gate made from dragon steel fell down over the tunnel he had just come from. Ahead of him, from a tunnel on the opposite side of the arena, walked his six opponents. Three earth dragons, two crystal, and one metal. All of them except the female crystal dragon were larger than him. The largest of which was an earth drake who was nearly double Kyral's size. Kyral guessed that the earth drake had to be over a century old, which was strange considering that many of the competitors who were lured by the promise of glory the arena brought were rather young. He was only thirteen years old himself.

But size didn't matter when you had power, and as Kyral looked upon his opponents he felt himself smile. They wouldn't stand a chance against him. He sat back calmly on his haunches, his metal shell beginning to ripple and contort against his body, like a living creature begging to be let free. Rarely did he get to fight more than three opponents. That night would be a treat.

"Fighter's, take your positions!" The announcer called.

Kyral didn't move, but the others began to stalk toward him, spreading out in order to attack from all sides. The metal dragon, a dragoness who was maybe a decade or two older than him, let her shell grow down her body until it encased her entirely. Her yellow eyes became red, and her mouth contorted in a snarl.

The lone metal drake watched them carefully, feeling his excitement rise, his tail flicking to and fro uncontrollably. There was no fear in him as his gaze flickered from one dragon to another. He couldn't help the smile that began to spread across his face.

"And... fight!"

Immediately Kyral's opponents attacked sending shards of earth, metal, and crystal toward him in a deadly rain. But he was quicker. The metal on his back leaped from him, acting as its own living being as it rapidly expanded, surrounding its owner in a sphere of metal. The attacks simply bounced off or shattered against the shield, only the other metal dragon's spikes really managing any damage as the pointed tip got stuck in the shield.

Inside Kyral let out a shaky breath of adrenaline, heart racing as he spread his wings. He couldn't see anything, his shield blocking out all light, but he could picture the movements of the other dragons in his mind's eye. He knew they had likely been watching his previous battles for the past couple of weeks, studying his movements and trying to figure out how to defeat him. But watching and doing were two very different things.

A smirk crossed his maw as he spread his wings, the metal around him responding to his will as he leaped upwards with a flap, the sphere losing its shape as the metal became like liquid. It swirled around him, separating into its own shards and spikes, each sharp enough to cut through stone and diamond. With a roar he launched them out outward in a storm, hundreds of metal spikes being launched at the dragons below. There were cries of pain and snarls of discomfort as the spikes fell upon them, cutting through wings and flesh. Only two dragons remained unharmed. The metal dragon, who had blocked the spikes with her own metal, and the large earth dragon, who had pulled the ground up from beneath him to act as his own shield.

The others were not in so good shape. One of the crystal dragons lay bleeding on the ground, with a spike in his back and several holes in his wings. The other snarled, having narrowly been able to defend herself from most of the damage with her own abilities, but still having several scratches. The other two earth dragons seemed mostly fine as well, though Kyral could see blood dripping from their wings and sides. He smiled at them. It would be disappointing to see them all defeated so easily. Besides, that simple maneuver had set him up for what would be happening next.

He closed his wings, dropping to the ground. His shell was now completely gone, leaving flimsy-looking pale yellow wings and sensitive scales open to attack. His metal was all over the arena now, stuck into the stone walls and scattered over the sand. He could feel each piece as though it were a part of him, calling out to him, connecting to him. It was ready to act, and so was he. The next phase of his dance began.

With a roar, he launched himself toward one of the earth dragons, the more injured one. His distinct lack of a shell allowed him to move with a speed and ferocity that was otherwise unusual for his species. Yes, he was now open to attack, but that was where his metal came in. As he ran forward every single piece of himself he had scattered over the arena reacted to his will, launching themselves from their place toward both him and the remaining dragons.

The earth drake being charged opened his mouth and fired an earth boulder at the metal drake. A metal spike shot forward into the boulder, piecing it and shattering it into a thousand pieces. A spike beside Kyral expanded into a thin metal shielding, spinning alongside him as it blocked several crystal shards sent his way. Five more attacked the earth dragoness, becoming blunt objects, one of which smashed her jaw at a rapid speed, sending her into unconsciousness.

Kyral could feel every attack, every shift of the wind, every movement he needed to make. He had become hyper-aware of every aspect of his surroundings. The slight shifts of wind against his sensitive scales. The thud of the ground of every step from the large earth dragon behind Kyral as the drake launched a barrage of earthen missiles at him. The sound of chiming metal as the metallic dragoness used her full metal state to block the countless spikes sent in her direction, each sending her staggering backward as she struggled to hold onto her armour.

Kyral launched himself forward with a flap of his wings, descending down upon the earth drake in front of him. He swung his wing forward, calling forth another metal spike, which shot toward his wing. It expanded, enveloping his wing once again in meta, its momentum increasing the speed and power of the strike. Kyral made sure his wing was blunt, as while death was not unusual in the arena, it was avoided as much as possible.

His wing cracked against the earth dragon's skull, sending him reeling backward with a stagger and a cry. More metal was flung at him after the attack, spikes that would run straight through his body if they were called to do so. Instead, they expanded, hitting him with a casing of metal that trapped him against the wall. He was far too dazed to even try and defend himself as he was trapped up to his nostrils in metal.

Kyral spun with the attack, almost as though he were dancing, another dozen spikes moving toward him and quickly joining together to form a shield in front of him, blocking another barrage of elemental attacks shot from the crystal dragon. Kyral looked down upon the three leftover dragons that were his opponents, the smile still on his face. He would have to finish this up quickly as the injured crystal dragon would likely die soon from blood loss if a life dragon wasn't able to get to him.

With a roar Kyral called all the spikes away from the dragons they were assailing, calling up hundreds next to him as he hovered in the air. He would let them have a moment of respite before he finished the battle. They were exhausted, bleeding, and tired. The crystal dragoness looked as though she could barely stand, though the anger and frustration in her eyes told Kyral that she would be more than willing to fight further.

With a smirk, the metal dragon launched himself forward with another flap of his wings, the spikes shooting forward once again in a roar. Several dozen spikes combined together in a pillar, shooting toward the metal dragon. Sharp objects didn't really work against a metal dragon's shell. The blunt head of the pillar slammed into her, crushing her against one of the arena walls. A whimper escaped her as all the wind was pushed from her lungs. The metal encased her, trapping her as well.

Several dozen spikes shot toward the crystal dragoness as well. She tried her best to defend herself, launching shards of crystal from her mouth and tail, but it was too much to handle. The spikes shredded through her wings and shattered her scales, sending her staggering backward, before finally being taken out by another blunt hit to the head with a spike.

The elder earth drake was the only one able to hold up under the barrage. Despite the many bleeding wounds and cracked scales, he still found the power to summon a wall of stone from the ground, blocking the rest of the metallic shards sent toward him. Kyral was slightly impressed, though he guessed he wasn't surprised seeing such skill from an older dragon.

Once more he summoned the rest of the spikes toward him, a grin running across his muzzle as he took a flap forward and descended toward the earth drake. More of the spikes connected together once again to form one large spike in front of the metal dragon. He launched it forward at high speeds toward the earth wall, breaking through it with ease and leaving the dragon behind it open to attack.

Kyral roared, more of his metal reconnecting to his body as it encased him in a full metal form, his eyes becoming red. The earth dragon swung his tail down at Kyral, the large spiked ball at the end easily large enough to do serious damage despite the armour Kyral had summoned. Instead, another final spike careened from the side, cutting right through the point of contact between the earth dragon's tail and the large spiked ball, slicing it clean off. The earth dragon roared in surprise but was unable to react to the speed at which Kyral moved as the tip of his own tail adopted the shape of a spiked ball, whipping around and smashing against the chin of the earth dragon.

The drake staggered backward with a grunt, stunned and dazed. Kyral pressed his advantage, spinning gracefully as he used his wings to through himself forward, smashing the earth dragon's head once again, but this time with his wings. The final blow came in the form of the last spike, which made itself into a blunt object as finished the blow with lightning speed. The earth dragon fell to the ground, unconscious, leaving Kyral as the only dragon left within the arena still on his feet.

A roar of victory escaped his mouth as the crowd became frantic with excitement. His name being called over and over as they cheered on his victory. Kyral smirked, prancing to the centre of the arena and spreading his wings, basking in the glory of his victory as the announcer declared it over the crowd.

* * *

Later that evening Kyral found himself back in his small cave home, allowing himself to relax within a pool of heated water. On his back sat a human man with a brush, scrubbing down his bare sensitive scales, the metal shell having been condensed into a ring around his right horn. His home was a rather humble place, considering the vast fortune he had made through his arena battles, with a single metal bowl that was his nest to the right, a small pit where he ate his food, a pool of water in which he drank, and a larger pool he was currently in that was often a heated bathing place.

His three human servants had also placed numerous flaming torchers around to lighten the place up a bit. There was a smaller cavern at the back, which he had placed a dragon steel door to guard. It was where he hoarded most of his gold and winnings from the arena.

"Any exciting opponents today, sir?" the human scrubbing his back asked.

"They put me against six today Wesley," Kyral chuckled, "It gave me the opportunity to use my Dance of Steel."

"It must have been quite exciting sir," Wesley said as he moved further down the dragon's back, scrubbing off the blood and dust that had managed to get all through Kyral's scales.

"It was. There was this old earth dragon that was taken down immediately as well. Still not a challenge of course, but he did better than most. Aah! Don't bush too hard, that hurt," Kyral exclaimed as Wesley took to a certain spot close to Kyral's tail with a certain vigour.

"Sorry, sir. Wouldn't come out. I've got it now though."

"At least give a warning next time," rumbled the dragon, before shaking his head and continuing his retelling of the battle. By the time he had finished Wesley had cleaned the rest of the gunk from his scales, and took his leave, allowing Kyral to relax into the hot water with a soft purr.

He had nearly fallen asleep when a voice broke him out of his stupor, "Hello!"

He shot out of the water quite fast as a young crystal dragoness walked down into his cave, the ring on his horn expanding rapidly to cover his back and wings and a growled leaving his throat, "Wh... what in the world are you doing down here? Who are you? Who let you in?"

The dragoness giggled as she looked at him, her opal scales sparkling with an odd and alluring sheen, "Oh, that human. Wesley. I said you were expecting me."

Kyral didn't know what it was, but there was something about the way she spoke that seemed almost entrancing, drawing him in, "But... I don't even know you? Right?"

"Oh, no. We haven't met," she took some carefully measured steps toward him, "But I know you. I'm a huge fan. I just wanted to get to meet you... personally."

He took a couple of steps backward, shaking his muddled head. Every word she spoke was entrancing, and he found any anger, shock, and surprise melting away into the back of his mind.

"What's your n... name?" he asked.

"Oh... I'm Wyneta," she rumbled alluringly, "You seem quite flustered. Do you like crystal dragons?"

"Yes... I mean what? No!" he shook his head, "Look, Wyneta, I appreciate it, but I don't really like dragons coming into my... home... unannounced."

He finished weakly as she sidled up right in front of him, her nose nearly touching his. In most situations, he would feel incredibly uncomfortable being this close to a strange dragoness, but as he looked into her piercing yellow eyes it was like all the discomfort was being melted away into him, replaced by a single desire.

"I'm sorry... I didn't know how else to see you. You disappeared so quickly after the battle," she purred.

"It's okay... just tell me next time," he rumbled, while some part of his brain was screaming 'Since when is there a next time?'

She giggled again, nuzzling against his neck, before turning around, "You are too easy. Come on, follow me."

All resistance was gone from the metal drake as he began to slowly follow her out of his cave. He didn't even question where she was leading him, or what she wanted. All that he could think was that there was that possibly the most beautiful dragoness he had ever seen had walked into his home, made quite heavy suggestions on what her purpose was, and now had asked him to follow her. Some logical part of his brain still yelled out against it, but that was so deep that it was impossible to hear.

Kyral lived at the bottom of a large ravine deep within one of the earthen nation's cities. Thousands of dragons meandered along the ground and flew through the air, all of which were one of the three dragon species that were part of the kingdom. Cave openings had been placed all over the cave walls, many blocked by large dragon steel doors which took some effort to push open. Crowds of humans also walked along the ravine floor, keeping as much to the side as they could to avoid being trampled by the many dragons walking across the ground.

Wyneta glanced back every so often at Kyral, giving him a flashing alluring grin that only further enraptured the metal drake in her spell. They eventually made it to another cave hidden deep within the side of the ravine. Wyneta entered first and Kyral eagerly followed, not questioning the echoing snap in which the metal door behind him fell shut. Behind the door was another small cave lit by firelight, quite a bit smaller than his own. But as he walked in he was shocked enough to break out of his stupor, seeing three other dragons of species that he had never seen before.

He rumbled in surprise, shaking his head with a growl. Suddenly his wariness flooded back, followed by confusion. How had Wyneta been able to allure him so easily? He was usually rather controlled during any situation where he was confronted so abruptly by his dragoness fans, despite how beautiful some of them were. And it seemed Wyneta had led him straight into an ambush.

The three other dragons in the room were a yellow and speckled orange lightning drake, with strange wings and an electric aura. The second was a mossy green acid dragoness, with startling blues and reds around the inner part of her joints. The final was a pale icy blue ice drake, with a frill of spiky horns and a deadly chilling aura.

"What the..." he growled, dropping down into a ready position.

"Oh, you broke out of it so quickly," Wyneta pouted.

"I mean, he did walk into to three strange dragons Wyneta," the lightning drake sighed, "I think you can break the illusion."

She sighed, "Aah, very well."

Her entire body seemed to flicker, like an image on water, before dissolving before his very eyes. What was left was a much larger, older, dragoness, with pale sky-blue scales and an all-knowing gaze that pierced his very soul. A mind dragon. A hiss escaped him as he took a couple of steps back, the metal on his shell beginning to ripple and move in preparation to defend himself.

"No need to get violent young one," the acid dragoness spoke, "We are not here to harm you."

"What do you want?" growled Kyral, feeling his anger at being tricked and likely controlled running through him.

"We just want to talk," Wyneta said, "So, please come down, before you do something you regret."

"You think I can't take you all?" growled Kyral, his tail lashing behind him.

In truth, he had never fought any dragons besides the crystal, earth, and metal dragons he fought in the arena. But surely he could take out these four without much difficulty. The only problem he found himself having would be if the mind dragon was somehow able to take control of his mind. But that was all a matter of willpower, and as was usual for a metal dragon, he was rather stubborn when it came to doing what he was told.

"As strong as you are, I do not think you can defeat four dragons of equilibrium with the same control over our elements as you do over yours," the ice dragon said rather bluntly.

"Wh... what?" Kyral blinked in surprise, taking a closer look at the dragons around him.

It was then he realized the distinct lack of blemishes on their scales, the perfection of their form, and most importantly the terrific aura each one of them wielded. The freezing temperature of ice, the tingling of electricity, the acidic smell, and the mental strength, all in front of him like a wall of strength. He suddenly didn't feel so confident.

"That's better," Wyneta said with a calming smile as he felt the anger and worry slowly drain from him, "We just want to talk."

"Okay..." he rumbled, not seeing another alternative.

"You see, Kyral, for the past ten years I have been searching the world for others like me that don't particularly... fit in with the rest of their society. Whether that means they've been exiled, or they are shunned, or they dislike their lot in life and want to get out of it. The only requirement of course is that they have power, a natural affinity to their element that others do not have. After seeing your battle today, I believe you have this affinity," Wyneta began.

"I'm not a dragon of equilibrium if that's what you mean," the metal dragon replied.

"Oh, I know. But your skill and control over your metal suggests a greater connection with your element than most other dragons," the mind dragoness said, "And the way you move your metal with your mind suggests the same thing."

"So... what? You want me to join you?" scoffed Kyral, "I'm sorry, but I am quite happy with my lot in life. I enjoy the arena. I have enough gold to do whatever I want. Dragons respect me, they look up to me. I don't think if I just up and left they would think the same."

"Aah yes, you have built quite the life for yourself," Wyneta nodded her head, "But... would that still be the same when they figure out who you really are?"

A snarl escaped the metal dragon. He had underestimated how willingly and deeply the mind dragon would see into his mind, his memories, and more importantly his secrets.

"How long have you lived here now? Three years? And why did you have to move so far from your original home?"

"Are you threatening me?"

"Of course not. I would do no such thing. I am warning you. You can't hide who you are from everyone forever. They will eventually figure out who you come from, and the same thing that happened in your previous city will happen here."

"I can always move again."

"And what happens when those dragons find out who you are? What... you move for a third time? Then a fourth? As long as you remain in the earth kingdom, young one, you will never find peace."

"And my only option is to go with you four? I don't even know you!"

"Of course, it is not your only option. It is one of your better ones," said Wyneta bluntly.

Kyral fell silent for a moment as he regarded the other dragons in the room. The lightning drake was watching him with an unreadable glare, studying his unwillingness to join them with a slight smirk. The acid dragoness and the ice drake had begun to have a quiet conversation of their own, though when Kyral and Wyneta stopped talking they paused their conversation to look at the two arguing dragons once again.

Kyral knew Wyneta was right. It was only a matter of time before the dragons around him figured out who he was, especially with his newfound popularity within the arena. Once they did he would no longer be looked up to, admired, or even respected. It was always the constant threat of the looming truth over his head that followed him wherever he went. The truth of his heritage and the dragon that was once his father.

But he didn't trust Wyneta at all, nor did he trust the other three dragons around him. Especially since he had only been lured here by mind control and trickery. The idea that these dragons wanted him to join them when he knew nothing about them was preposterous. No amount of mental manipulation would convince him otherwise.

Still, some small part of him was jumping at the idea of going out into the world with a group of strange and powerful individuals. The adventures they were sure to attract would be exciting at the very least. And the prospect of sparring with a dragon of equilibrium was something that made his warrior's blood pump with all new vigour. After all, the best way to get stronger was to fight one stronger than yourself.

"You said some of you were exiled. Are you all criminals?" Kyral asked, wanting nothing to do with the likes of them.

"It depends on who you ask," Wyneta responded, "I was thrown from the kingdom of the mind because I was encouraging experimentation with greater powers of the mind. Aegis, the lightning drake there, left of his own free will after he had a big disagreement with his sister, Joy'el, the lightning representative. Parrella, the acid dragoness, was bored with her lot in life and wanted to leave it behind, and lastly, Vigon, the ice drake, was exiled because he was a great influence within his kingdom and often was the only voice that spoke out against their queen Polliar. They didn't like that, and thus sent him away."

"So, you are criminals. Some of you anyway," snarled the metal drake.

"Wrongfully convicted. Just like your father," the mind dragon said softly.

"Zyal," Kyral pronounced the name as though it were poison, "Was... is... a danger to our society. His experiments could have killed everyone!"

"But they didn't."

"But they could have! And he didn't care! He didn't care about anyone! Not me, not my sisters, not mother! He could have wiped us all out. And then he left without even saying goodbye, like the bastard coward that he is," Kyral roared out, overcome by anger at the mere mention of his father's name.

"Someone has some issues," Vigon the ice drake spoke with a slight smirk.

Kyral focused his glaring snarl at the ice drake, "Issues? Damn right I do. Just enough to consider cutting your throat despite what might happen to me afterward."

"You are free to try," Vigon grunted, his tail flicking side to side.

"Don't antagonize him," Wyneta growled at the ice drake, before turning to Kyral, "I did not mean to offend you. I am only suggesting that what happened to your father was unjust and that he wasn't the danger he was made out to be."

"If that were true he wouldn't have disappeared in such a hurry," snarled the metal drake.

"That may be so, but you won't know unless you ask him," Wyneta said softly, her calming voice stripping Kyral of his anger.

He looked at her curiously, "You know where... Zyal... is?"

"I was actually hoping you did," Wyneta replied honestly, "That was the reason we came here in the first place. But when I saw what was inside your head... well I was intrigued."

"So you are looking for him then?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

Wyneta hesitated a moment, studying Kyral as if debating on whether or not to tell him the truth, before letting out a sigh, "I believe he is one of only two dragons on this planet who are able to unlock the full potential of the element stones."

"Wyneta!" Parrella exclaimed, "I thought we were keeping that a secret."

"If we want him to join us he deserves to know the truth," Wyneta shot back at the acid dragon.

"Why do you care about the element stones?" growled Kyral.

"To be prepared for what the other dragon with this ability will do," it was Aegis, the lighting dragon, that spoke, a deep conviction in his voice.

"Who is this other dragon?"

"I believe you know of her. Her name is Athaer, the queen of fire," Wyneta said, "Whom Aegis here has personally met before. While he is unsure of her motives, he does no that if we are to defend this world from her we will also need the element stones."

"Athaer?" Kyral had obviously heard the name, the fire queen having quite a reputation, but he hadn't really put much thought into the workings of the other nations, "What makes you so sure she will use them against everyone?"

"We don't," Wyneta responded, "But we believe it important to be prepared for that eventuality."

"And you need my father's help to do it?" Kyral said, "And to this goal you want me to join your small group of... exiles?"

"We call ourselves the Elementals," Parrella said with a grin, "Considering all of us have power over our own elements, rather than stealing it from the seven elements. We have essentially become our own elements."

Vigon snorted, muttering about stupid team names.

"My fath... Zyal," Kyral corrected himself, "Experimented on my sisters and my eggs before we hatched, putting us in stasis with element stones. I think that is why I have such power today. I always thought that was stupid of him, to put his own hatchlings at such a risk. Now you are saying that I was wrong to think this."

"I don't know," Wyneta replied, "But if you want to talk to him, coming with us is your best shot."

The metal drake still hesitated, still unsure about the dragons in front of him.

"If you don't want to be apart of our group anymore... you can always return back here and continue your fighting," the mind dragon said with a grin.

Kyral let out a long sigh, shaking his head, feeling as though he would regret the decision he had already come to in his head, "Fine. But I need to take care of some things first."

"Take all the time you need," smiled Wyneta. 

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Hey guys! Thank you for reading this Chronicle! Vote if you enjoyed it, and comment on what you thought. Sorry for taking a little longer than usual. This was an incredibly long Chronicle, the longest yet, and I ran out of time yesterday to work on it. Either way, it was good, and I hope I did the characters justice. The next story should be out the usual time next week. Speaking of which, here are your remaining options.

A Life Dragon's Purpose: Agela, Life Dragoness - 6Yrs BTA

Unexplored: Vyll, Rift Dragoness - 13Yrs BTA

Dark Lightning: Joy'el, Lightning Dragoness - 48Yrs BTA

See you next week!

Pennator^^