The battleship rocked back and forth among the smooth ocean waves. Its dull metal hull cut through the water easily, and the imposing guns situated along the bow kept any would-be attackers well away. Flaking paint along the side revealed an emblem, looking like a dragon with a rope around its neck. It was a bleak sight for most, resonating stories of torture and pain, but for the occupants it was a temporary safe haven.

Sitting on the very edge of the hull was the silver dragon, looking over the ocean. Her shell shined in the morning sun, the dazzling light it caused dancing across the deck. The pale golden scales along her underbelly shimmered softly with gem-like quality. But despite her radiance, she seemed tired; her large wings limp against her side and long tail unmoving behind her.

The sound of claws against metal caused her to turn around, and smile. Blaze, her brother, was walking toward her yawning softly. They had been three days at sea now, slowly moving up toward India, where they planned to travel down the coast until the sea no longer took them in the direction they wanted to go. One of the humans had hacked into the ship's systems, disabling the tracker every D.E.D ship had and making it extremely difficult for anyone to find them.

"How are you feeling?" asked the fire drake, sitting down beside his sister.

"Better. Still a little warn, but it's disappearing," Silver replied, looking back over the ocean.

"That's not what I meant," he said, tilting his head at her.

She sighed. Travelling across the ocean without the need to fly had been a welcome advancement for the dragons. It took a fair bit longer, but it reduced the risk of them being found again, and allowed them to preserve their energy for when they really needed it. The problem was that the dragons were incredibly bored, and Silver found herself often wandering, thinking and worrying. She couldn't help it, and that atmosphere the ship created didn't help. Every day she felt as though the lives that she had taken not long ago were haunting her, weighing her down.

However that wasn't the most horrific aspect she had come across since their escape. She didn't know what it was, but it was like part of her had gone missing, or like part of her being had been torn away. She couldn't understand what it was, nor did she feel she wanted to. It seemed that equilibrium hadn't only changed her body, but her soul as well. This change had sent a primal fear running through her that she was struggling to control.

She smiled at her brother, "I'm fine," she lied.

"Silver," he said, "I'm your brother. I've known you since the moment you hatched. I know when you're not fine, and at the moment, even with your new body, it is quite easy to tell. Even West knows that something's wrong, and he's only known you for four days."

The dragoness snorted softly, "It's nothing to be concerned about Blaze. I'm just... thinking."

"I know. It's what you're thinking about that concerns me."

"Blaze..."

"Is it about what happened at A.O.D.H?" he cut her off, "About your equilibrium?"

She sighed again, "Look, I don't think you would be able to help either way, okay. So just leave it alone."

Her brother hesitated, before softly nodding his head, "Okay, if you say so. But at least come and join us down below. West has created this really... interesting game to pass the time. It'll help keep your mind off... whatever is troubling you."

Silver grinned slightly, "Fine. As long as you stop bothering me about it."

His eyes lit up and he smiled back, "Then lets go!"

The two dragons walked back to the trapdoor situated in the middle of the deck. It was a large rectangular hatch, made from heavy metal that could only be opened by a switch in the control room. It was big enough to fit almost any sized dragon, and Silver suspected it likely had a very different purpose to how they were using it currently.

It was open, the large door up in the air, revealing the metallic confines of the ship below. However instead of the usual tortured screams and cries of dragons as they were given their collars, the sound of laughter echoed from within, along with the sound of rushing water and the screeching of metal against metal. The dragoness winced softly at the sound.

"What are they doing down there?"

"Come, I'll show you," said Blaze with a grin.

They leapt down the open trapdoor, landing with a soft clank against the floor. It was very damp, almost slippery. Silver grunted with surprise as she almost fell over, before turning to look at two dragons responsible with a small frown. She let out a small cry of alarm, quickly leaping out of the way as one of the cages kept on the D.E.D ship came spinning passed, pushed by a large gust of wind.

"Haha! I win this time... no wait! Dammit!" West's voice echoed through the room as the cage slid passed the sunlit opening and crashed into a wall on the other side.

It was followed by a giggle and another screech and wash of water as another metal cage was pushed along the floor clanking slowly until it aligned with the shining sun. The dented and scratched object wobbled slightly before coming to a rest.

"Aargh, how are you so good at this game! Lets go again," the wind dragon, quickly running over to the cage on the other side.

Reha giggled, before turning to look at Silver, who was glaring at the two of them. The water dragoness shuffled a little nervously, turning away from the intimidating dragon with a small gulp. Blaze suddenly broke out in laughter, causing his sister to glance warily at him.

"Okay, that was close, I admit," he said, walking over to her and nudging her to her feet, "But it was pretty funny."

Silver shook herself and snorted, "I would say this is a very dangerous game. What the in the world are you doing?"

"Haven't though of a name for it yet," West said, dragging the cage he had blasted across the room from where it had hit the wall, "But the main goal is to get one of the cages to sit just under the hatch, or in the sunlight, without touching it. So, basically only using your powers."

Reha bobbed her head, seeming far more enthusiastic then usual, "Yeah. I've won every time."

"Its damn annoying," West flicked his tail.

Silver let a small smile cross her snout, "Is this as pointless as it sounds?"

"Yep!" the wind dragon declared proudly, "But it's the only thing to do around here besides sitting and moping."

The metal dragon glared at him.

"What?" he shrugged his wings, "I'm just saying."

"Okay, I get your point," she walked over to one of the spare cages in the corner and dragged it out with a bit of effort. They were heavier then they looked.

She tilted her head, studying it for a moment, before looking at the others. They each had elements that allowed them to push the cages quite easily, while hers was more for getting things stuck. Taking a step back from the metal contraption she summoned a ball of metal in her throat and fired it. A loud metallic clang rang through the room and the cage slid about a metre. The metallic ball fell to the floor and leaving a large dent in the side.

"Come on, you can do better then that," challenged West.

He shook himself, grinning softly. He took a deep breath, as if gathering as much air as possible, then he opened his mouth breathing out a large volume of air at the cage. It began to move slowly at first before slowly picking up speed until the gusts of wind flipped it over, sending it sailing right passed the trapdoor a second time and crashing into the opposite wall.

"Aargh, missed it again," snorted the wind drake.

Reha chuckled softly, before glancing over at Silver, "Can you do a continuous stream of your metal?"

The other dragoness nodded her head, "But that is more for getting things stuck then pushing them."

Reha nodded her head thoughtfully, "Can you make it so that it doesn't get stuck?"

Silver hesitated, "I... could try."

Taking a step backwards the metallic dragoness took a deep breath, before launching out a stream of liquid elronium. She focused on it, warping it and controlling it, so that while most of the metal was in its melted state, the end had become a solid point. It was surprisingly easy, considering she had never done it before. The metal hit the cage once again, pushing it almost a dozen metres before it spun out of control, disconnecting from the metal stream.

Silver smiled competitively as she felt something stir in her heart, something she hadn't felt in a long time. It was a light hearted feeling, making her giddy on the inside and she couldn't help but laugh, lashing her tail and quickly trotting over to the cage she had pushed.

"Yes!" West cried, "Lets do this. Best of... well... until we finish. The winner gets to make the looser do whatever they want? That a deal?"

The others nodded their heads in agreement, and then they began the game. For the first time in a long time, they had the kind of fun that only free dragons could.

* * *

Silver left the hatch as the day was coming to a close, feeling exhausted and happy. West had lost overall, much to his disappointment, and was forced to take the night watch for Reha, who had been the overall winner. It had been a very fun and messy game, and in the end they had decided to stop when one of the cages had been sent through the side of the ship and into the water below, by the wind dragon of course. Using her metal, Silver had managed to fix up the hole but they all agreed that it would be a wise idea to stop before they caused any more damage.

With a small chuckle at the memory the dragoness laid down one the very edge of the deck again, so her tail dangled over the side and was occasionally splashed by the water below. It had been a while since she had felt like this, and it served as a reminder that, with all she had been through, she was still a free dragoness. It was an invincible feeling, one that no one would ever take away from her again, and she suspected the others felt the same way as well.

She looked out into the quickly darkening sky, the last moments of sunset being caught along the ocean's edge. She could hear the others laughing and talking in the background, the humans with them. They were really starting to trust the group of ex-dragon handlers now, and even West was growing comfortable around them. She let out a long and happy sigh, not feeling in any hurry to get back to Sky Mountain, despite how long it had been since she had seen the dragons she loved so dearly.

As she turned to walk back to the small group a strange silvery light suddenly illuminated the ship, causing her to yelp in surprise. A growl rumbled through her as she turned to look around, wondering what could have caused such a strange phenomenon. Glancing back at her friends she realised their laughter had stopped completely, as had all other noise. The ship had stopped moving. The waves had stopped crashing. It was like time itself had... stopped.

"Hello Silver, long time no see," said a deep and powerful voice, causing the dragoness to yelp again and spin around to see a familiar silver drake sitting on his haunches with a hint of a smirk across his maw.

"O'hen?" said a startled Silver.

"Aaah, glad you remember my name," he said, flicking his tail, "How are you?'

"I... aaah... well... I'm going good," she shook herself, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you," he replied, "It's about time we talked again."

"Oh, is something wrong?" she asked.

The hesitation in his answer caused her to frown softly, "I must admit, things haven't been going great. Time is in a bit of a conundrum."

"Ha?"

He looked at Silver before sighing, "From around this point onwards there are three possible futures, and for the first time I am completely unsure of what will happen, and one of these futures is one I fear greatly, for if it comes to pass it will mean the end of life. Dragons, humans, animals, trees, all gone."

The dragoness tilted her head, "Oh. That's not good. How does it happen?"

"I can't tell you that," said the time drake, "But I am here to make sure that it doesn't happen."

Again Silver frowned, "Oh?"

He smiled, "But first, let me ask you something. How have you been feeling since you reached equilibrium?"

"Aah..." she hesitated, "I've been... well, honestly, I've been feeling a little strange. It's like I have a completely different body, which is taking some time to get used to, and anything and everything to do with my metal seems far... easier."

He nodded his head, "That is expected with equilibrium. You and your element are no longer separate, and have joined into the same being. It's why your body is so different. I wouldn't worry too much about it."

"Oh..." she shuffled her paws, "Can I change back to my normal body?"

"No," he chuckled at her disappointed look, "Sorry, but its what happened. When you return from equilibrium your body becomes your perfect physical self, in a sense. Trust me when I say that you will be grateful for the changes in the later future."

"Okay, if you say so," she thought for a moment, before deciding to tell him about her other troubles, "Also... ever since I reached equilibrium I've been feeling as if there is something... different about me. Like part of me has gone missing."

O'hen nodded his head again, "Ah yes. I suspected you would ask about that."

"You don't seem that worried," she stated.

He smiled softly, "When a dragon reaches equilibrium something inside them breaks. You probably already know this. But what you don't know is what this 'break' does to someone. To put it simply, when that part of a dragon 'breaks' it is usually that intense emotion, feeling or determination that causes him or her to reach this point in the first place. For your brother, Raize, it was his rage that caused him to push himself to breaking point. Didn't you notice that afterwards all the anger and hate he had felt was basically gone?"

Silver nodded her head, gulping softly, "So... what did I loose?"

"When you reached this point, what were you feeling?" he asked.

"Uuhh... I can't remember too much," she frowned thoughtfully, "It was right after Eldawin told me that he was going to use me to destroy the human race when I started fighting back. Wait! Does that mean I've lost me will to fight for the human race?"

"No! Of course not," snorted O'hen, "I don't think it was that exactly that caused you to loose control. It was simpler then that. I think it was the fact that you had a very strong... view on what was right to you, and you refused to go back on that. Basically you were horrified at what he wanted, and this caused you to go over the edge."

"Oh, so... how does that affect me?"

"Well..." he hesitated, as if weighing wether it was worth it or not to tell her, "It means that your... susceptibility for crossing the line you wouldn't cross before has increased.

She blinked, not quite understanding.

"Okay, to out it simply, you are more likely to resort to more... questionable methods when fighting or generally dealing with an enemy," he said.

"How does my will to stop what Eldawin wanted affect my tolerance of what is right and wrong in battle?" she grunted, still a little confused. The time dragon always confused her.

"Oh, you will see in the future," he swished his tail, "But that is off topic. Now, before you go, I wanted to tell you that from now on things will be getting much harder for you, and you need to work quickly if you are to stop Eldawin from destroying the human race. I suggest telling your friends exactly what caused your... episode, and explaining in detail everything that must be done to stop this from happening."

"Okay," Silver nodded her head, focusing back to what he was saying, "But how are you going to stop this other future from happening."

"You will find out," he said, "But I'm going to start off with training you."

"Training me?"

"Yes. When you reach land, on your first night, find a place where no one can see us and we will begin. This ship is a little small after all, and by then you should be fully recovered from your equilibrium," he said.

"Why?"

"Because as you currently are you stand no chance against Eldawin," he said simply.

"I disagree with that," she grunted, "I chased him out pretty easily with my equilibrium."

"But you won't always be facing him with equilibrium, and even if you were you have no idea what he can accomplish when he is in equilibrium."

"Then tell me."

"Not at the moment, young dragoness. Be patient. I will frighten you a bit later," he chuckled softly, "Now, return to your friends. We will talk later."

Before Silver had a chance to say anything else O'hen disappeared, along with his strange light and ominous presence. The laughter behind her resumed. A bird chirped in the air, and the sounds of rolling waves were once again thrown into the air. Frowning softly the dragoness turned around, padding over to her friends, once again deep in thought.

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Hey guys! New chapter! I got this one out quickly for ya :) I hope you enjoyed, I like this chapter quite a lot actually. Vote if you did, and comment what you thought. The next chapter will be out soon. See Ya!

Pennator^^