AN: I hate author's notes, but this is justified. This chapter contains very upsetting content, including gore, physical/mental torture, and generally triggering. Thank you again for reading :)

The stone door swung open and two dragons entered, their helmets at their sides and their faces holding only disinterest at the bloodied dragon before them.

The interior guard turned and bowed slightly to them. "Captain?"

"Narvok was otherwise engaged, but he'll be here shortly. My raid expert, Helmer and I, will be overseeing interrogations."

The guard nodded. "Understood. This dragon was-"

"Having a blast before we were blessed with such high ranking company..." Shiel spat red at the Captain.

His beaten body was held in the air by thick chains, his front paws tied together over his head which exposed his stomach, crisscrossed with oozing wounds.

Octonus, paying no mind to the saliva at his paws, focused on the guard. "Has our guest given up anything?"

"No, but we found a stolen folder in his companion's satchel."

"What was inside?"

"Don't know, sir. Authorized access only."

"Unopened?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Let's begin."

......

The dragonet's nightmare began with an open air pavilion. He looked around, surprised by the beauty of the environment, one he had never seen before. Where in Ironpit is this?

Paurus ran his claws down the side of a pillar, watching the fine granite dust as it trickled down past his fingers. The dust irritated his nose, and he coughed.

Water dripped from his jaws, bitter and cold. He furrowed his brows and leaned down to look into the small puddle at his feet. His reflection swirled as he breathed on the surface, then morphed into a much larger shadow, spreading at his feet.

He gagged and vomited, bitter water gushing from his mouth and nose, leaking past his eyes and clogging his ears.

Haunting voices pounded in his head.

"I want what I deserve, you cannot take my dues away from me!"

"I can't see you-"

"Why are you here?"

"It's time to-"

Paurus clutched at his throat as the water rose above his head. He couldn't breathe. Chunks of the once pristine archaic structure splashed down around him, now becoming weathered and decrepit stones.

His paws were held down by a hidden force, a sharp and cold grip on him, anchoring him to the floor. The sound of metallic scraping filled his head as he thrashed in the depths.

Paurus's eyes shot open and he gasped for air, the flood of oxygen into his lungs made his chest hurt, but he was relieved by it anyways. It was just a dream.

He glanced around the room, trying to remember where he was. A blank stone cell, a closing door, and a dragon in armor unhooking the chains around his paws.

Without a word, the guard dragged Paurus to his feet and hooked another thick chain to the metal ring fastened around his neck. He was led past cell after cell, the sounds of screaming so frequent that it sounded like the walls themselves were crying out in pain.

"Here."

The dragonet looked back at the guard inquisitively, but was roughly shoved to the floor in another cell. The door slammed behind him.

"Touch a scale on his body, and I'll end you." A familiar voice in the unknown environment.

Paurus looked up to see Shiel, strung up and smeared with dried and glistening blood. Before he could catch his breath, he was yanked to the corner and fastened to the rings bolted to the wall.

"I'm afraid you're in no position to make such threats." A night dragon shook his head in mock sympathy, tapping a claw on the metal staff in his paws. "Really, this would be much easier if you would just cooperate."

"You can't give up information you never had." Shiel hissed, twisting against the chains that held his paws above and behind his head. His muscular arms were torn and leaking blood, his face bruised, and his stomach quivered with the effort it took to keep his body upright enough for him to breathe.

"Maybe..." The night dragon mused, then jammed the end of the staff against Shiel's ribs. Blue electricity crackled and the fire dragon howled in pain, his eyes clamped tightly and his body shuddered. Heat seared through his nerves, and he felt like his scales were melting off onto the stone floor.

The guard withdrew the rod, watching without emotion as Shiel panted and spasmed, trying to focus on the dragon in front of him with dazed eyes.

Paurus tugged on his chains desperately. "Leave him alone!" His voice cracked with fear and his eyes began to water. Shiel, once stoic no matter the threat, now almost seemed to whimper.

Paying the dragonet no mind, the interrogator set the staff aside and picked through other instruments. He began speaking to two other dragons that stood silently to the side. "I'm not convinced he has nothing to share, Captain. I will break his spirit, cursed bloods never keep their secrets for long."

The captain, another night dragon, nodded slightly. "See what you can do, Narvok. Question the dragonet if you have to. Even if they don't know what was in the file, they can lead us to the camp. This could save Ironpit." He turned to the water dragon beside him. "Helmer and I will gather our task force in preparation."

"Yes, sir." The interrogator bowed his head as they left, then turned back to Shiel with a cruel smile. "Where were we?"

"I was just about to tell you to go to hell." Shiel sneered shakily, blood running down his neck from his nose and lips.

"You and your kind will get there first." Narvok chuckled, selecting a metal spike. "In the meantime, I'd like to learn about the location of your friends." He spat the word like it was bitter.

"Probably having a grand time with your mom."

The night dragon responded with a growl as he thrust the spike into his shoulder, leaning close to the fire dragon's contorted face. "Your games are getting old. Now. Talk."

"...kinky bastard."

The guard stood straight, sighing heavily. He gripped the end of the spike and pushed it further into the muscle, then yanked it out as Shiel screamed in agony. "I've always wanted to use a child against their loved ones." He ran his eyes over Paurus, using a claw to wipe some of the crimson blood off the blade.

Paurus whimpered and backed into the corner as the guard approached him. "Let's see how loud you'll scream."

"NO!" Shiel yanked on his chains, thrashing to get to Paurus before the guard did. "No! No! Wait, WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY?! Do you want me to beg?! Because I'M BEGGING YOU-"

The interrogator turned to him and, with a sick grin, wrapped his hand around Shiel's neck, strangling him, holding the blade against his throat. "I do enjoy begging... but this is much more thrilling."

He grabbed Shiel's wing and wrenched downwards against the chains, a sickening snap preceding the agonized wailing as his wing dangled at an unnatural angle.

Narvok turned the spike calmly on Paurus as Shiel continued screaming and advanced, kicking the dragonet onto his back and slowly sliding the blade across his delicate stomach skin.

Paurus was silent as he began to bleed, closing his eyes tightly and refusing to give the guard any twisted satisfaction of him screaming.

"Stop, please! Just stop, I- Don't hurt him, please! I'll tell you whatever you want to hear, PLEASE-" Shiel gasped, darkness settling on his vision. The pain of Paurus's expression hurt him more than his broken frame ever could.

Without looking back, Narvok began carving into the dragonet's face, finally earning the screams he was after.

...

The night sky was crystal clear as the fire dragon paced. It was late, it wasn't like her to be late.

"Shiel, you act like you've never had to be patient in your life." A voice chuckled from behind him. Her voice.

"Never for the important things." He grinned, turning around to see the dragoness looking at him with eyes filled with love.

"Hm, well, you'd have to wait three months before becoming a father, do you think you could handle that?" Iris nuzzled his chest, curling her neck to rub under his chin.

Shiel shook his head. "Getting ahead of ourselves, aren't we?" He teased.

The dragoness leaned her head back to look up at him. "Not at all." She kissed him softly as he stood, shocked and staring. "We'll be parents soon."

"Iris... this is... that's... ibbick, Iris! We're going to be parents!" He couldn't handle his excitement as he threw his wings around his mate.

It was only after the initial shock wore away did he stop. "Iris, we should leave."

"...What?" She asked him, confused.

"Ironpit. The fighting. The freedom fighters. Leave it all behind." He shook his head, grinning. "We could have a normal life in another kingdom, where they'll never know about our powers-"

"Shiel, you know we can't. Our cause... it's bigger than us. Our place is here, fighting for our future. For our dragonets and their future."

...

I don't have a future to fight for. Not anymore. If she had agreed to leave... everything could've been different.

Shiel shook his head to stop the tears. The past didn't matter, it was as dead as Iris. What mattered was here and now, where he and Paurus might end up dead too.

The dragonet stirred in the corner, whimpering in pain as he opened his eyes. The right side of his face was crusted with dried blood and he looked in dizzy confusion at the dried pool at his talons.

"Don't try to stand." Shiel had to say it twice, the first was inaudible due to his inflamed throat. "You'll open your wounds again."

Paurus looked up at him with fear. The fire dragon's shoulder was still bleeding, and his wing was bent lifelessly. But worst of all, the fire dragon had been crying.

"Shiel..."

"Yeah kid... I'm ok." The fire dragon coughed, an ugly sound, and blood dripped onto his chest.

Paurus looked down, watching the shadows from outside slide underneath the door and melt back out again. It was like the waves of an ocean Shiel had described to him once.

"You never... I didn't know you had magic."

Silence.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Shiel croaked and twisted his head towards the far wall. "Kid... you don't. You can't-'' Coughing. The dripping of blood onto scales. "I... I needed to protect you from what I am. What I... was."

"I can protect myself-"

"No, Paurus!" Shiel snarled, the sound echoing painfully off of the dark metallic walls. The older dragon sighed, continuing in a more hushed tone. "There's some things you just... don't understand."

Silence.

"Are we going to die?"

It wasn't the question of a mercenary, or a soldier, or a street-hardened orphan. It was the question of a boy who had never considered a less-than-immortal possibility.

"Ibbick... I don't know, Paurus."

And that scared the dragonet almost more than death.