The group of seven were up with the sun, getting ready quickly for the day. Tug's hoof was mostly healed, he was no longer limping.

"About time we took a small break, we've been pushing hard the past few days." Dusty said from where he was laid down.

"That is true! All this killing and torturing is taking it out of me!" Thyra jokes from leaning against Pulse's side.

Dusty looked over at her, a warm look in his eyes, "You wanna grab breakfeast? I've gotten it for the past three days."

"Of course!" She exclaims, grabbing her crossbow-shield and staff. She leaves Pulse at the camp, and heads off by herself to catch something.

As Thyra returned with three rabbits and a squirrel, to find Dusty, in his fury form, swimming in the warm pond, his tongue out in relaxation.

"Well, look at you!" Thyra laughs, setting down the catch. "Having fun?" she sets down her weapons as well and decides to join him.

She wades into the warm water and swims over to Dusty.

Dusty puts his head against her, and purrs in relaxation, and lazily wraps around her.

She smiles. "We've really needed to relax, haven't we?"

Dusty slowly closes his eyes, and doses off, feeling the warmth of the water, and Thyra's presence, soothed him.

They stayed like that for another hour, too relaxed to move, but eventually dragged themselves out of the water to fix themselves some food before the dragons could eat it all.

Dusty lays down next to the fire, as Thyra warmed the food up.

Thyra prepared the food and handed Dusty a rabbit, keeping one for herself and giving the squirrel and the last rabbit to the dragons.

Dusty snapped up the rabbit and quickly ate it, and laid his head down on Thyra's lap.

"You are in a sappy mood today, not gonna lie." Thyra says, finishing her food off.

Dusty looked at her with puppy dog eyes, and gave her a lick on her cheek.

"Eww. Absolutely disgusting!" Thyra complains, wiping the saliva off her face.

Dusty's ear-plates dropped, and looked away from Thyra, cooing a sorry.

"Aww, it's okay, don't be sad!" She laughs, flicking his ear plate. "I got what you meant, and me too."

She heard a low growl come from him.

"What?" She looks down at him with a laugh. "Cranky, are we?"

Dusty let out a larger growl, and picked his head up, his ear-plates flat against his head.

"Wow. I'm sorry I offended you!" Thyra exclaims, shaking her head in exasperation, getting to her feet to stoke the fire.

Dusty looked at her, with his slit, blood red eyes, and not his warm,wide, and forest green ones.

"What's up with you?" Thyra asked over her shoulder. "I didn't think you would react like this."

Dusty used his tail, and knocked Thyra about eight feet away.

"Whoa! What in the name of Thor?!" Thyra exclaimed, rolling onto her feet. "That wasn't cool, Dusty. Not cool at all!"

Dusty looked into her eyes, and gave a roar, as red liquid dropped out of his mouth, Pulse and Dark jumped between them.

Thyra looked at him, confused. She walked to Pulse's side and shook her head. "I don't know what's going on with you, but I don't like it." She told Dusty with a frown, crossing her arms.

Dusty shot a plasma blast, that slammed into Pulse, throwing her thirty feet, backwards, and slamming her into a tree.

"Pulse!" Thyra called out in worry. She glared at Dusty, "How dare you do that to her?!" Her eyes were now slit.

Dark looked back at her, then at Dusty, and roared something to Thyra, just as Dusty charged another blast.

"Oh, you wanna shoot another one? Fine!" Thyra exclaimed, moving so that she was in front of Pulse protectively.

Dusty's next blast flew at Thrya, but Dark jumped in front of her, and took the blast, he landed a few feet away, whining in pain.

Thyra was shocked, she looked from Dark to Dusty, absolutely horrified. "This...this isn't you. Is it." She looked right into Dusty's chillingly expressionless eyes.

A shot from Pulse flew past her, and just missed Dusty, who eyed her with a deadly glare.

"Don't hit him, Pulse." Thyra called out. "I have no idea what has happened to him, but all I know is that this is not him. He...he's got to be in there somewhere."

Dusty eyed Thyra, and slowly advanced toward her, more red liquid dripping from his mouth, as he charged another blast.

Thyra backed up with every step he took, holding her hands out towards him. "Dusty, snap out of it!" She yelled. "For f***'s sake! This isn't you!"

Dusty sucked in to fire at point-blank range, less than five feet away from Thyra.

Thyra's eyes widened. "I don't think I'm going to be able to dodge that..." she muttered as he kept walking towards her. She kept backing away, looking around desperately for a solution, but her back hit a tree. She didn't have her weapons, not that she would use them against Dusty anyway. She could hear Pulse roaring in protest.

Dusty used his paw to pin Thrya against the tree, and looked into her eyes with his cold, emotionless, glare.

She stared back with sadness and fear. "It's me. It's me." She kept whispering, hoping he would come to. But he just continued building up his blast. "Dusty, it's me. I love you. I love you. Please. Come back to me."

Dusty looked directly into her eyes, as her words hit him.

"I know you, Dusty. You wouldn't hurt any of us. I love you. I want to spend my life with you. I want to conquer Rome with you. Get revenge on anyone who has wronged us."

Dusty slowly shook his head, and clawed at it, as his mind spun.

"I know you can fight it. Whatever IT is. Just fight it, and come back to me. Because you are the strongest person I know. The bravest. I love you. You and I have come so far together, don't let it end here. Please."

Dusty shook his head again, and threw his head up with a great roar, as a glow formed on his right shoulder.

Thyra watched with wide eyes, still pressed down against the tree. Suddenly a dull throb was felt where the slave mark is on her upper arm. She ignored it, focused on Dusty.

Dusty dropped to the ground as weird grub-like bugs jumped off his head.

Thyra was released from her hold in the process, and she jumped to the side to avoid the bugs. She hesitated.

"...Dusty?" She asked softly, nervously moving closer, ready to jump away.

Dusty slowly looks up at Thyra, with his warm, forest green eyes.

She let out a shaky breath of relief. "You're back." She mumbled.

Dusty dropped to the ground, and let tears fall.

Thyra dropped to her knees beside him, running a hand over his head as tears fell from her eyes as well.

Dusty shifted back, and pulled Thyra into a hug, as he cried on her shoulder, "I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I...I...i shouldn't be with you...I don't want to do that again."

She clutched him tightly, eyes shut tight. "I know you're sorry...it wasn't your fault...we're...we're okay. I don't know what they were, but you...you weren't in control."

Dusty looked up at her, "I love you Thyra, I don't know what you did, but it saved all of us."

"I didn't do anything." Thyra said. "But...something happened. I saw a glow from you...at least I think I did. Everything moved too quickly."

Dusty looked at her bare arm, and froze as he looked at her slave brand, "Thy...Thyra."

"What?" She answered, wiping away a tear.

"The...the brand." is all he says, as he pulls his sleeve up to look at his.

Thyra turned and peered at hers, out of curiosity. When she saw it, she nearly fell back in shock. "I...it's...it's changed!" She spluttered.

Dusty pulled his sleeve up, to show the same mark where his brand was, it was no longer the mark of the Roman empire, but it was a Night Fury roaring, but looking from the side.

"I don't...I don't understand!" Thyra exclaims, tracing the black silhouette on her arm. Dark and Pulse sat down just feet from them, and bowed.

"Wha...what?" Dusty asked.

"Is this some kind of a joke to you?" Thyra asked the dragons, annoyed. "Our slave brands just changed!"

They didn't get an answer, as the shrubbery on the other side of the clearing rustled, and Dannish soldiers came out of the woods

Thyra groaned. "Can we never get a break?!"