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Under one of the peaks of the Aedd mountains, Gymraedd great rock formations, far away from any Krysdjer eye, lay a big cave, with a deep, dark, mouth that continued into the belly of the mountains. A rock platform, illuminated by the moonlight, rose in front of it, facing a vast range of altitudes covered with pine forests, except for an angle on the right that opened in a valley. On it, lay a small dragon with scales like the color of green moss, watching the night sky with her deep, blue eyes and an expression of worry on her muzzle.

"Mum, do you think something happened?" she said, her eyes still on the direction of the stars.

"No, Eyndert" an adult female voice answered, twice as tall as her, who slowly exited the entrance of the cave and approached the smaller, younger dragon "but he's coming back, I am sure. Now it's time to sleep."

The dragon's daughter gave her a disappointed look, with a shade of fear. "You're not" she blamed her "you always think that some of those bad humans will find him..."

The golden female dragon closed her eyes for a moment. "Eyndert, listen" she said "your father is stronger than dozens of those humans. When I first met him, in Daeldras, he tried to impress me by transporting a bunch of heavy stones on his back while flying..." she grinned, forgetting for a while the troubles of the present, while remembering her future mating partner soaring up with a gray pile almost half as high as him to convince her to be breed with him. Albeit the memory was quickly contaminated with a stream of sadness from the memory of her old home, built for the dragons by the Gymraens, next to the sea. Although that cave was comfortable, it was not the reason they lived there now. No Krysdjer could ever reach that part of the mountains, unless carried by a dragon, a possibility that of course did not exist. That cave had been chosen not for living, but for hiding.

"And did he impress you?" her daughter asked.

"He did" she nuzzled her. As Eyndert's nose tore away from her tongue, she abruptly turned her head back to the sky with the crescent moon. He was taking longer than usual, that was true: the sky was not so dark normally when he came back. But even when he had had troubles he had always returned without any wound...at least as far as she could remember...

Being courted by the son of a member of Gymraedd's Dragon Council had been a high honour for her when she had moved to the south-western coasts of the land. But males had to conquer the approval of a female for obtaining their offspring - and Dyavat knew to have been a particularly difficult female to convince. Only the strongest and more capable males would ever manage to deserve her attention - only one dragon ever succeeded in it, who would, years later, ascend to the chief position of the same Dragon Council his father was part of. Dyavat would mate exclusively with him, resembling humans in this, who would often mistake her for his life mate - an honour, she knew well, that happened to be enjoyed by his partner's best friend, Talork. But then the war against the Krysdjer invaders came, and all of the three hatchlings who had survived their first month ended up heroically joining their elders' spirits before they could ever reach elder age, the same their former parents were living now.

Once they entered into exile into the cave they inhabited now, Dyavat had insisted they had to produce a new hatchling to keep hope alive, while her mating partner had shown a fearful attitude that was totally in contrast with the confident temperament she used to know. "I don't want to breed hatchlings that will never fly freely" he would insist. Her reply would be: "If we stop reproducing, it will be a deadlier path than a thousand* slayers". Eventually, other eggs were hatched, with Eyndert currently the only surviving child.

Had the dragons been still free, Eyndert would have spent the majority of her time with other hatchlings, discovering the world, as dragons mostly learned by observing others. Eyndert instead, hatched in a time of fear and slayers, forced to stay almost always in the same cave with her biological parents, was growing an attachment to them that, despite being normal for humans, was unusual in dragons. It was becoming the norm: how many times the two siblings they had rescued would talk about their dead parents, Dyavat thought...all this protection and paranoia was slowly degrading the new generation...but nevertheless, she eventually sat down next to her daughter and looked at the stars with her to wait for her father.

After some more waiting, two wings appeared in front of the luminescent moon, lightening the female dragon's scales. She and her daughter made space to let him land in the cave's entrance.

"Dyavat" the male amber dragon greeted her lowering his head.

"Iexolud" she returned the gesture.

"Dad!" Eyndert appeared between their heads, greeting him happily with enthusiastic licks. Such a gesture more suited for dogs, she snorted mentally. But Iexolud grinned amused, content.

"I have some things I want to talk about" Iexolud declared, giving a last kiss to his offspring "but I am utterly tired. When the sun's above the peaks, I need to speak to all of you."

"Is this why you came so late?" Dyavat asked. "What is it about? You met a slayer, right?"

"I did. But_"

"Did you fly to Daeldras again?"

Iexolud's eyes lowered. "Sorry, Dyavat. It's important to me to keep alive the memory of that city. Even though it's so close to human settlements." He paused. "Anyway we have nothing to fear about that...pretty much the opposite."

"What do you_"

"At the sun's come, please, mating partner..." Iexolud implored "It was an intense afternoon."

"So" Dyavat begun "what is it that happened?"

Light rays of dawn partially penetrated the dark rocky corridor that was the dragons' home. Human eyes would have still found themselves too blind for the depth of that cave, still, if not for the great fireplace where Iexolud, Dyavat, and three more dragons, with Eyndert sleeping in one of the cave chambers, sat in circle. Being dragons, they did not really need it to see in the dark, but their millennial bond with the Gymraens had taught them using the fire for sitting all together, enjoying the warmth on the scales - way more comfortable than passing heat through physical contact like in the old tradition - and chatting pleasantly. Moreover, the fireplace was essential on those occasions when one of the Gymraens visited them, usually the man who would be the Gymraen king, Aldaevr, and his lovely daughter, Ianha.

"Two things happened" Iexolud started. "No, no, we're not in danger" he quickly added "but someone else could be. I met a new young dragon that has crossed the ocean to come here. He doesn't know the area and could possibly be in danger."

All the other dragons around the fire looked at each other. Then one male the age of Iexolud, who had a strip of red hair on his back and whose scales were crimson except for the large white strip that crossed his torso, spoke. "I know what you want. You want to bring him here."

"Yes, Talork."

The dragons returned looking each other.

"But Iex, why didn't he follow you, then?" Talork added, smiling with his eyes.

"He was...far harder to convince than Erphjor and Nyphjor" he instinctively looked at two dragons, one indigo and one white with light-blue marks among her scales "way prouder."

"Even more than Nyphjor?" the red dragon joked. The young white dragoness was pretending not to hear, while her brother's expression did not change. "that's amusing..."

"Well, I don't know that" Iexolud smiled, a smile that quickly faded out, "but I'm sure he has known nothing but solitude and pain. If we want our race to be kept alive, instead of just surviving we need to save any young one we can."

"That is very noble" Nyphjor commented ironically "but do we have space for one more? If we rescue all those you meet here we'll need a second cave."

"Yes, we do" Iexolud replied, untouched by the youngster's harsh tone "the tunnels this cave develops deeper are sufficient enough, you know it very well."

"But..." Erphjor, the indigo one, spoke timidly "how can you...find this new guy? It's too risky now to find him again."

"It's risky, yes" the old dragon replied grave, "but a new generation is worth twice my own life."

Talork and Dyavat closed their eyes, like for searching in their souls an answer. Eventually Talork declared: "I wouldn't take any unnecessary risk, but I know it's hard to change your mind " he laughed lightly "I would join you but...well, you know...my problem" and his head turned down to a small bulge in his body where the left forepaw should have been, an inheritance from the war.

"I know" Iexolud's heartache came once more for the memory. Never would he forgive himself for that act of stupidity, an act which cost his life mate a lef...

"Let me join you in your search, if you have to do it" Dyavat declared.

"Actually" Iexolud replied "now that I think about it, it could be more effective to have a young one with me to speak to the new dragon. Someone whose story is similar to his, who can show him that he will be safe and that has met the Gymraens. This dragon - his name was Shrkvaen, if I'm correct - blamed us for befriending humans. He has known nothing but slayers."

"Wait" Talork said "you mean Erphjor and Nyphjor?"

Iexolud nodded.

"It's a hazard" Nyphjor immediately said "your sentiments are honourable like always, but this is too much. You're asking us to wander around the land and almost certainly being targeted by a good amount of slayers...for one more life. Besides, weren't young lives precious? Why would you exchange ours for another one?"

"As long as you fly together with me" the amber dragon snorted "you will not have to worry."

"You just said it before, it's risky!" she growled. "Our parents were brutally slain by one single human!"

"Nyphjor, that was..." he interrupted himself, for not hurting her too much, even though some part of him was suggesting she may as well deserve it. "...a different situation."

"Why then don't we go out for attacking the Krysdjers? To reclaim our and the Gymraens' territory?" she roared, begging to cause distress apparently. "It would be a real cause for risking our scales! Unlike looking for a single dragon that could be anywhere!"

All the other dragons snorted in unison, each leaving a little smoke from their mouths.

"Nyphjor, dear" Dyavat replied, with a severe look "It seems that once again I must remind you that we and the Gymraens together couldn't defeat them fifty years ago. We can't beat them by simply declaring suddenly war against them."

This did not discourage the young female dragon. "It's just that...I'd rather die trying to earn a free life than living with fear forever. And aren't we dragons? We are meant to fly free! And we are much stronger than humans!" shouted fiercely. "But to waste our force by hiding and going out only for stupid reasons! We're acting like cowards, and when we decide not to be so, it's only for continuing our politics of cowardice!"

The silence that fell confirmed Iexolud he was not the only one who was too tired to reply to her.

"Well, I'm going" Erphjor broke the silence "if Iexolud needs me, I will always help him. I trust Iexolud. Don't you?"

Nyphjor gave a venomous look to her brother. "Really? After all the times you were almost killed? Remember when they shot us with their_"

"I do!" Erphjor answered back "But we were both inexperienced with our surroundings, after a life of barely leaving our den!"

"That's enough!" Dyavat interrupted both. "Nobody forces you to join Iexolud, if you don't feel like it. Erphjor, you will fly with him to help him find this dragon, if this pleases you. Nyphjor, you can remain here, and that will make absolutely no problem. But don't you ever accuse us anymore of cowardice, ever." He turned back to the old dragon. "What was the second news, anyway?"

Iexolud's heart relaxed at the memory. "It's about the slayer I faced. He was ready to kill the youngster, whom I saved, and I was about to slaughter him, and...well..." he became uncertain. Dragon spirits certainly did not communicate often to living entities ..."

"What?" Talork asked.

"I heard a voice...it sounded like my father" he continued, hesitant "I had to avoid killing him, it said."

The reaction around him were mixed. Talork and Eyndert slightly opened their mouths, amused; Dyavat and Erphjor were impassable masks; Nyphjor's eyes narrowed.

"The spirits spoke to you?" Dyavat said. "Why would they?"

"I wouldn't ask" came the deep, cordial voice of Talork "it's not possible to know what the spirits have foreseen, Dyavat."

"Assuming it was the spirits" Nyphjor commented, once more nasty. "Whatever they could say, a slayer should be slain. For our safety. There would be one less pestering us."

"If they have spoken, and I assume they did" Dyavat replied "they had a serious reason to tell him not to do it, which we will discover one day. Patience is the most natural of a dragon's virtue, with our long lifespan."

Iexolud then continued. "Anyway, the slayer fainted and later we had a chat. Yes" he nodded, amused watching the surprised dragons "I asked him some questions...it wasn't a bad chat, although there were some tense moments."

"What did you talk about?" Erphjor asked.

"About why he does it."

"And...what did you get?" spoke Talork.

"I'm not sure" Iexolud admitted "he does it because it's the only job he knows and they pay him. So we can't really expect him to turn away from his...ahem...activity" he closed his eyes, the warmth of the fire relaxing him for some instants "but hopefully I gave him some doubts. He had met only dragons who had to defend themselves or who were driven by a terrible revenge...similarly to the youngster we're going to rescue."

Around the fire, the other dragons looked each other, for the third time. Then Talork spoke: "It was something we should have done before, possibly". Nyphjor, carefully watched by his brother, had her mouth half-opened, like if she was so desperately in need to comment again.

"You don't expect us to spare all the slayers we face, right?"

"Of course not, young one" Iexolud answered peacefully but decisively "if you battle, your life must be the priority. As for me, I'm old and confident enough to take certain risks."

Dyavat looked at him clearly. "Is there anything else that happened? You talked to this slayer and it ended there?"

Iexolud nodded.

"Well, it was an important gesture" she concluded. "Now you are going to find that dragon and there's nothing we can do to persuade you to stop, I suppose."

"No" the old dragon confirmed, and got up from his place "and I mean to leave today. Erphjor" he turned to the young indigo dragon "do you confirm me you are going to follow me?"

Erphjor slowly got up. "I do. I am eternally in debt with you, Iexolud."

"Fine. It's better not to be more than two. We would be too visible_"

"Iexolud, please" Dyavat spoke "you said it, young ones are to be saved. Let me go instead of him_"

"I am sure of my choice, Dyavat" the young dragon replied. "And I'll be safe with Iexolud." He looked at Nyphjor, whose eyes were firmly pointed at the ceiling of the cave.

"So, let's get ready, Erphjor."

*512 in dragon numbers. Dragons use a numeric system with 8 digits, since their paws have 4 fingers each.