Patton looked himself up and down in one of the many mirrors that were around the Temple of Time. He didn't look like himself at all. He was dressed in light armor and had a sword at his side. His hand brushed its handle, feeling conflicted by the idea of using it to hurt someone.

"Patton, are you ready?" his boyfriend asked, pulling him from his thoughts.

He turned, his eyes widening at the sight of Logan. He was in armor too and equipped with a bow slung across his chest and a quiver full of arrows hanging from his shoulder. He radiated confidence with his stoic expression. Patton felt his heart swell with pride at the sight of him, but also felt even more out of place.

"Yeah, I'm ready," he replied.

Logan noticed his unease and moved toward him. He placed a gentle hand on his shoulder and gave him an encouraging smile. "You can do this, Patton. You're stronger than you think."

A smile found its way back onto Patton's face. He nodded as his confidence began to come back. Logan nodded as well and gestured for him to follow him out of the armory. They made their way to the planning room, where Father Time was awaiting their return. He handed each of them a supply bag. "You're ready. Logan, you know how to get there?" the old man asked. The Holder of the Watch of Time nodded firmly as he took the watch from his pocket. "Good. I wish you both luck. Return here once you're finished."

"Understood," Logan said.

He took a hold of Patton's hand and asked him once more if he was ready. With one last nod, Logan opened the watch and a flash of light overtook their vision. The floor fell away from their feet and reappeared a few moments later. Patton blinked away the temporary blindness and looked around.

They had traveled to a forest but he could tell just by the trees that something was definitely wrong with it. He frowned and walked toward one of them. He reached out and touched it. The bark seemed to turn to ash, making him gasp and pull his hand away.

"Goodness," he murmured sadly. "The fact that they're drilling into the mountain must also be affecting this forest. They're sapping the whole area of magic and life with it."

Logan nodded in agreement. "I believe you're right. Come on, the factory should be this way."

The pair began their walk through the forest. Patton tried not to let the fact that the trees were thinning and becoming more decomposed as they grew closer to their destination freak him out, but his skin was crawling by the time the factory was in sight. They stopped to devise their plan.

"Okay, we need to sneak in together through the stables," Logan began, pulling out the map to show his boyfriend. "Once we're in the factory, we'll have to split up and start putting the bombs in the marked locations. Three bombs each and then we'll meet back up where we came in and sneak back out through the stables. Understand?"

"Got it," he replied.

They began to move toward the smaller building beside the factory. They stayed low to the ground and were careful to avoid any search lights that were scanning the area. Patton felt his heart beginning to race as they made it to the stables. There were only a couple guards around, making it fairly easy for them to sneak inside without being noticed.

It was dim inside the stables. It was difficult for them to see anything until Logan produced a small orb of light from his hand. Patton gasped in surprise. "That's so cool!" he whispered.

His boyfriend smiled a little and nodded. "Indeed."

"Wait, what the heck is that?" Patton murmured, hearing the sound of animals breathing very loudly inside the building. They stopped and listened for a moment. He shook his head. "Those are definitely not horses. Come on."

"Patton, shouldn't we focus-"

"It won't take long, I just want to see what they're keeping here," he reassured him. They sneaked through the stables and found the room with the stalls for the animals. He peered over the fence of one of them and nearly had a heart attack upon seeing what was inside. He jumped back in shock. "Logan, this stable is full of dragons."

Logan's eyes widened and he glanced inside the stall as well. "Wow," he whispered. "Magnificent."

Patton took a deep breath, overcoming his brief panic to look at the creature again. Now that he knew what to expect, he could agree the it was a magnificent creature. He smiled, but it didn't stay on his face very long as his eyes traveled up and down the dragon's body. Even in the dim light of the stables, he could see the open wounds and scars all over it. He felt his heart ache at the sight, letting out a sad sigh as he shook his head. "That's awful..."

"I know, Patton. That's why we're going to stop this," Logan said, putting a hand on his cheek. "We'll come back for them, I promise."

He nodded reluctantly. He took one last look at the dragon before following his boyfriend out of the stables and into the factory building. The stone bricks of the factory gave off a much more ominous vibe than the stables. Patton's skin began crawling once more.

Logan checked if the coast was clear. They each pulled out their copy of the map. "Okay, your locations are marked here," he pointed out. "Mine are here, so you should go that way and I'll go this way. Remember, this is a stealth mission. Place the bombs and then come back here. We'll get out of here and detonate them once we're safe. Got it?"

"Yeah, I got it," Patton managed. His boyfriend turned to head toward his locations. He grabbed his arm to stop him. "Wait! Just... before you go," he pulled him in for a quick kiss on the lips, "for luck."

He smiled and nodded. They then parted ways. Patton's heart was racing and his hands were shaking, but he felt determined to do this.