Silver bit down on the juicy morsel of meat in front of her, rumbling slightly at the tangy, salty taste of blood. She didn't care of the mess she made, or the amused glances of the dragons watching her. It had been too long since such a meal, and she was determined to cherish every moment. The now unrecognisable carcass was quickly devoured, bones and all, before she sat back with a satisfied burp.

"I don't think I've ever seen you eat so much so quickly," stated her fire dragon brother, Raize, with a snarky grin.

She smiled back at him with a snort. He had grown quite a bit over the nine months it seemed, and his tail now reached a foot further the Silver's, much to the dragoness's annoyance. Her brother was an incredibly handsome dragon, even she had to admit that. His red scales looked as if they were polished to an odd perfection. Even the slightest piece of light seemed to make them shine. His wings were the perfect length in proportion to his body, as were his tail and horns. There was a gleam in his eye, one that spoke of a certain charm that she new her brother enjoyed. The talons along each foot were perfectly sharpened, creating the picture of a near perfect specimen. But there was also something else. A heat which radiated outwards from his inner core, sending a hint of the overwhelming power Silver knew her brother controlled.

"Did they even feed you in A.O.D.H?" He asked, sitting down near her.

She nodded her head, "Of course they did. I had a meal once every two days."

"Then why are you so... skinny?"

The dragoness hesitated, looking down over herself. The nine months captured by A.O.D.H hadn't been kind to her. Her well toned body had become a wreck. Her ribs were showing at some points, her scales were loose and dirty from her escape. Her shell didn't shine as brightly as it usually did, the elronium metal taking on a rather dull shade. Soon though she would be back to her previous self.

Silver licked the blood from her maw, "They worked me pretty hard."

"Aah... did they... you know..." He said, a hint of anger crossing through his voice.

She shook her head, "No, they didn't. In fact, they gave me a choice on the matter."

"Ha? That's strange," he frowned, "Why would they do that?"

She shrugged, "No idea."

A small yawn escaped the dragoness and she shook herself. It was the middle of the day, but she was quite tired. After travelling for five days she really needed a rest. That would have to wait however, as Iraliene, the leader of Sky Mountain, wanted to have a talk. It was only to be expected, she just hoped the life dragon wouldn't be too hard on her.

"Where's Zepos?" asked Silver.

The lightning drake hadn't made an appearance since she arrived back. She had thought he would have been eager to see her once again. She knew she wanted to see him.

"He's been out scouting with a small group for the past couple of days," Raize replied, "He should be back sometime soon, within two or three days."

"Hmm," Silver nodded, slightly annoyed but understanding. She had missed the lightning dragon, a lot.

"Don't worry," Retrix, who was also there,  said with a small grin, "He'll be back before your know it."

"I know," she said with a grim smile, before yawning once again and stretching her wings, "Well I better go. Don't want to keep Iraliene waiting."

"I'll come with you," Retrix replied, getting up from where he had been laying.

She nodded and flapped her wings once, then twice, slowly lifting into the air, before gliding out of the cave they had been resting in, Retrix close behind. Sky Mountain had changed quite a bit in nine months. The dragons seemed more disciplined, more determined in some ways. The floor below was smooth again, entirely fixed from Raize's equilibrium. There seemed to be a greater number there as well, as if Sky Mountain had been steadily growing in Silver's absence.

There were a few nodded greetings as she went flew by, but she couldn't recognise many of the dragons. They had been gathering more into the mountain then. A solemn attitude occupied many of the dragons, but they seemed happy. Or at least content. It made her smile.

She landed at the top of the cave area and walked inside. It took her a moment to remember which way to go out of the three tunnels that split off from the main one, but she chose the right and managed to get to where she needed to be. She passed a few dragons on the way, who glanced at her in interest. For a few it would be the first time they had seen a metal dragon. They seemed a little intimidated by Retrix as well, making Silver wonder how much they had seen of the void drake.

The cavern they entered was much the same as before, though a little more crowded. A mind dragoness greeted them with a small nod, which Silver returned, before getting a closer look at her. A smile spread across her face, followed by a laugh.

"Merene?" Silver said.

"Good to see you again, my friend," Merene  replied with a nod of her head, "It's been a while."

"Likewise," the metal dragon nodded her head in agreement.

Merene fell into step beside Silver and Retrix, flashing a smile at the void dragon. He grinned back before turning to look upon Iraliene, who was sitting on her usual perch, monitoring the activity of her cave. When she saw Silver the elder dragoness smiled warmly, getting onto her feet and making her own way through the crowd. The action surprised Silver slightly, it wasn't like the queen of Sky Mountain to move from her perch to greet with someone.

"Silver! It is good to see you well!" Iraliene said genuinely, "We have all missed you around here."

She was as large as usual, her glittering emerald scales shining in the ceiling lights. Her demeanour was strangely calm and friendly, and her eyes had lit up at the sight of the other dragoness. It was a little unnerving to see her like this, but Silver shrugged it off and returned the greeting.

"It's good to see you as well," She dipped her head in respect but couldn't help but frown slightly at the life dragon's attitude.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better then I've been feeling the past nine months. But I am a little tired after the journey."

"Of course, of course. I just wanted to see how you were going. As long as we have nothing to worry about."

Silver nodded with a small and hesitant grin, "Thank you. I have been feeling a bit strange since my escape, but that should wear off in the next couple of days,"

Iraliene bobbed her head in agreement, "Good, good. I'll have to have a longer talk when you have rested. Tomorrow sometime?"

Once again Silver frowned. It wasn't like her to ask if it was a good time. It was usually an order, something that must be obeyed. It didn't matter if she felt it was a good time or not. Still, it could be Iraliene being kind to her, probably suspecting a degree of mental damage from being inside for so long. That was part true, but the days flying through the sky had cured that.

"Okay, tomorrow then," Silver hesitated, before turning away with a small sigh. What had that been all about?

"Your cave has been unchanged in the time you've been away," said the life dragon before she left, "It is just how you left it, if a little dusty."

Silver smiled in thanks before slowly walking to the exit of the area once again. That had been far quicker then she had hoped. She said her goodbyes to Merene, promising to see the mind dragon again some time, before once again taking to the air and flying from the cave. Retrix followed close behind.

They flew in silence for a couple of moments, making their way out of the mountain, passing a few more dragons in the way. Silver glanced at the void drake. It had been so long since they had last met, so long since they had talked. The last time they had been together was during the fight for Sky Mountain. The battle where Silver had lost her freedom, and she knew that there was a question she still had to answer for him, one that could change both their lives. She sighed at the thought.

"So..." Retrix suddenly said, beating his wings a little harder and coming up beside her, "You said you were feeling a little strange before. How?"

She blinked, a little surprised at the question, before shrugging and answering, "Well... You know how when you get the device off your head, your mind... clears almost. Like a fog has been lifted. That didn't happen for me. I feel as if there is still a fog in my mind."

"Aah, okay. You don't have to worry too much about that. I had something similar," said Retrix, "It took a week or so for the fog to disappear."

"Really?" the dragoness frowned at this. Her father had said that as soon as the device is disconnected the fog surrounding the mind lifts, leaving the dragon clear headed once again. Maybe it was different for some dragons.

"Yeah, so just relax. It'll be gone soon enough."

She smiled at him, feeling a little more relaxed, "Thank you Retrix."

"No problem."

They circled down over the tops of the trees and came to a landing in the small clearing outside Silver's cave. It was much how she remembered it. The beautiful pond was flat and peaceful, water glowing in the afternoon sun. Large evergreen trees surrounded the outside, the deep green leaves waving at her in the wind and the singing of birds echoed through the forest. The two dragons watched each other for a moment, both unsure as of what to say.

"I guess... I'll be seeing you around," said Retrix, shuffling his feet.

"Yeah... see ya," she said, looking to the ground, something in her not wanting him to go.

"Okay," he turned and opened his wings, about to launch himself into the air when Silver suddenly stopped him with a shout.

"Wait!" She said, taking a small step forward.

He looked back at her, a little confused.

"You could... stay with me if you want. Just for tonight," after spending so long away from him she found herself unable to see him go just yet.

He smiled at her and folded his wings, "Okay, I'd be happy too."

* * *

The next morning Silver woke rather early, but didn't move, a small content purr rumbling from her. A purple wing was draped over her, its owner curled up around the dragoness and sleeping rather peacefully. She rumbled slightly, pushing her shell-less back up against his warm underbelly, snuggling up to the void drake.

'Iraliene's gonna be ecstatic when she finds out about this,' thought the dragoness with a small blush, thoughts turning back to the previous day. It had been one to remember.

She shivered softly, causing Retrix to murmur softly in his sleep. She chuckled quietly before softly sighing again, letting herself sink into the other dragon's embrace. She could get used to this. For the first time in a long time she almost felt... safe. Now she knew why other dragon's wished for this so badly, enough to do almost anything to get it. She sighed and closed her eyes, letting the warmth radiating from the void dragon flood through her. A smile escaped her maw.

Suddenly her eyes snapped open, and she turned to look at Retrix once more. Warmth? He didn't radiate warmth. At least, as far as she remembered. The void energy he produced was one of the coldest things known, and thus his scales were usually a comfortably cool temperature, much like the metal nests she usually slept in.

She gulped slightly and carefully pulled herself away from the dragon, getting to her feet and looking at him a little more closely. His sparkling purple scales seemed to shine in the soft morning light entering through the cave, but they were slightly lighter then usual. Not the deep dark purple she remembered so vividly. Was this some other dragon, a mind dragon who had created an allusion around himself maybe? She narrowed her eyes and the thought, letting her shell grow back over her.

She glanced around the cave, taking in the familiar sights of her cave, only to find they weren't so familiar. The elronium statues she loved to create seemed dull and slightly less detailed. The stone of the cave wasn't the quaint grey she loved, and instead was a deeper colour, more violent. And the cave itself seemed an inch or two smaller then it usually was.

Looking down at the sleeping void dragon she took a stumbling step back, a sudden horrible realisation coming upon her. Of course, she could be just hallucinating, the effect of living underground so long shifting some of her usual memories, making her paranoid, delusional even, but something inside her knew that she was right. It was the only way anything that had happened... since then, made any sense.

She turned, running toward the exit of the cave, the peace she had felt before falling away. She launched herself from the cliff and flapped her wings, soaring into the sky. But she didn't stop there, she flew higher, higher and higher, until Sky Mountain seemed like a prickle on the ground.

Pulling herself to a stop the silver dragoness looked across the world, trying to prove herself wrong in some way. But what she saw only made her right. Everything was blurry, her keen dragon eyesight unable to pick out the inexplicable details of the mountain range, or what lay beyond. And the familiar tilt in the earth's surface wasn't there, revealing a vast, blank flatness. A small whimper escaped her.

"Whatever this is... let me out," she growled, looking to the sky, a seething anger suddenly bursting through her, "Let me out!"

At first nothing happened, and Silver was about to roar again, then the sky cracked. She flinched, backing away slightly. More cracks ran across her vision, like reality itself was shattering, falling away to reveal what was underneath. A spike of fear ran through her as she felt solid ground underneath her feet. Her surroundings began to break away, instead revealing a despairing blackness behind it. A blackness that she had seen before.

The earth and sky suddenly fell apart, breaking like glass. Another whimper escaped her as she attempted to step back, but was unable too. The sky changed into darkness, and the earth changed into solid concrete underfoot. Her wings were suddenly by her side instead of open, and the exhausted muscles she had used so much the past week seemed to rejuvenate, as if she had done nothing at all. And the red device on her head beeped, flashing its ominous presence.

Silver shivered, drawing in her feet and wings as she fearfully looked around at the place she had found herself trapped in. A barking laugh suddenly echoed amongst the darkness, causing her to flinch in fear.

"Well done, my young Silver. I'm impressed," a dull light illuminated the room, revealing a massive mind dragon, sitting on his haunches and watching her with a small grin, "Long time no see."

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Hey guys! New chapter! I hope you have enjoyed the book so far. Vote if you have and comment your thoughts on the proceeding so far. What going to happen next? You'll find out next time in the Silver Reckoning. See ya!

Pennator^^