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Ruins

Avila finally reached the dragon city of Dracokin...or what was the once thriving city of dragons. The three of them were very surprised on what was happening there. Dracokin city, a half-underground dragon city and the hub to the only dragon rider team the Order of the Dragons, had become ruins.

When the three of them came down to the city below, scent of death came to their noses. Ashes covered most of the ruined city, and even some buildings had started to grow plants. The city itself was sinking to the ground. Some years after being abandoned, many of the cobblestone structures were destroyed.

Avila inspected one particular skull from an unfortunate human. Her friends also found some other dragon bones and also human skeletons in the place. Dracokin had become a mass grave for those fighting in here.

"There was a fight here, many years ago," said Avila. "It could be dragon slayers."

"Dragon slayers are always knights and paladins, right? You know, those humans using all steel armor and came to a dragon lair to fight the wicked dragon?"

"Yes, Cynder, I know, but this is not a fairy tale. When you're in my world, you can't expect any dragon slayers to be a great knight-hearted arrogant fool, but they are wrathful beings who killed dragons for sport and for higher status. Moreover, they wanted gold."

"Isn't it the other way around?"

"We loved gold, yes, but they are because of greed. We're only taking what is not ours, or those relics from the past. Cynder...this is not where we'll find our answers. We must find some dragons..."

"Uh...Avila," said Sannourah. "I think there's still one dragon alive here. I can sense its life essence."

Sannourah, the dragon of destruction, could also sense life essence after Avila's attempt to return his own life thread failed, resulting in him unable to grow as much as normal dragons would and everything, including his voice, had become that of a youngling, though still adult minds. The corrupted soul of his now fused with death power like Avila's making him virtually a death dragon, although didn't get what side effect Avila had. Avila also sensed it, and she found out the dragon was inside a still-intact dragon house. They all walked there and wanted to go in when the dragon made blue flame coming out from its maw almost burn Sannourah if not for both Avila and Cynder's intervention, using their wind to stop the fire.

"I said I'm not going to fall with the city, low-lives! Come fight me!"

"Wait, I know her voice...Legna?"

The dark blue wyvern dragon was somehow out of her mind when Avila saw her through the darkness. The once proud female wyvern dragon was now like a captive dragon, with pale scales and torn wings; as if she had gone through the worst of wars, but had been driven mad as the aftermath. She attacked blindly to all wild directions and one glimpse on Legna's eyes made her knew that Legna was blinded by any reasons. Avila was so sad on what happened on her friend now, and wanted to kill her to ease her pain, but before she could do that, Avila felt another strong presence, and she suddenly got dazed.

"I'm impressed by your determination to go back here," said the presence with an evil laugh. "You have grown dark, Avila."

"W...what the hell is this?" said Cynder. She wasn't able to hold the darkness around her. She and Sannourah had started to get illusions while Avila herself was still dazed.

"You know everything you do will never kill me although you tried," said the voice. "You're too naïve...thinking that getting me into the dark void would make me insane and finally make me kill myself. You're still young...my dear dragon. You're not wise."

"Just show yourself! You're nothing but a coward!" exclaimed Avila with a strong roar that dispersed the darkness.

"Oh? Your voice had grown deeper," said the voice, now normalized. "You have aged since the time we met, Avila."

The unmistakable voice sent shivers down in Avila's gut. She knew that voice wouldn't be there...she had defeated the owner of the voice many years ago before she was taken to the other world. She knew, what she had done, would kill him, yet he stood there, behind her, with his yellow eyes staring at her own, jet black scales covering his body, and his vile-looking snake tongue that made him distinct. Avila realized he saw the dragon's back leg was now nothing but bones, and realized that he was still alive.

"Xiciro? How...how did you survive Emero Carought? You should have been killed!"

"I have my own tricks," said Xiciro while reshaping his darkness aura into a giant claw. "And I remembered I once told you that you can't beat me with darkness. I guess it's true."

"Damn it...then I should..."

"I know your intentions now, Avila," interrupted Xiciro. "But you know your friends' sanity is at the stake. They are now in my illusion, getting into the worst nightmares they had ever had. I intensify the nightmares, and I would love to see how they kill themselves..."

"Okay, okay! Don't make them insane like Legna!"

"Vile, I am, but I'm not always mad," said Xiciro. "Your blue dragoness friend is insane because of her own doing. She lost everything she held most, especially the one that really had the nearest relationship."

"You mean...she lost Nowe too?! After the angel?!"

"You seem to understand pretty quickly, unlike many short-minded dragons."

"Why she must suffer on you tormenting her?! Tell me! Is there anything you want to say on what you have done to her?!"

Xiciro made a chuckle. "Always talking as if I'm the bad one here. No, my dear Avila, I'm not tormenting her. Without eating she should have died some months after that tragedy, so I help her."

"You...help others? Like I want to believe your lies, vile dragon!"

"Like I said, vile I am, but not always mad. I still like to tease her by time, but I'm not taking advantages on her current condition to experiment on her unstable mental. Yes, that would be great, but...you're wrong if I'm always like that."

"What do you mean?" asked Avila while trying to think what Xiciro's last sentence's meaning. The black dragon just moved about, circling Legna and made a kiss on her, disgusting Avila. Xiciro then turned into a solemn-looking face.

"I...found the things I did wrong to all dragons, all of them. Those that my comrades lacked knowing and had forgotten after the world polished their scales into the sorry beings you all killed. I partly thanked you, Avila, for banishing me into a hollow space where I have time to think on everything I have done. As you also realize, despite of not having any muscles left on my left back leg, the darkness of Emero Carought helped me to make it move. Digitigrades are unique anatomy for a dragon, so it took 5 whole years just to try to mend it and make it moves like a normal limb. Well, I'm not a strong magic user so I can't create flesh from nothing."

"There are no dragons able to create flesh from nothing."

"It is, but darkness can. Have you ever read human legends about ghosts and living skeletons? They're controlled by the power of dark arts by some, but purely spiritual in some. I took the former method, and now I'm part-bone dragon, like those pitiful souls living inside a bog..."

"We don't need your lessons, Xiciro. Tell me everything when you reached the mortal plane. Your expression is like a dragon hiding a feeling toward something."

"You never cease to amaze me, young Argoon dragon. Your deducing skill is even better than what I expect from a human."

Right after that both Sannourah and Cynder somehow snapped out of their illusions and both made sudden confused reaction on what was happening. Ignoring them, Xiciro said, "I returned to this place 34 years before today, when this place had just become ruins. There are no other dragons left here except those dying and those decided to stay, including the dragoness.

"At first, I thought our efforts made us won, but...so many years trapped in the void made me think that I'm a dragon, not some slave to those haters. I tried to help some dragons using my darkness skills. I was fortunate no other dragons except you and that sapphire dragon knew about my name and appearance. Well, I really appreciated the new life given to me from you, and I come to realize that becoming an ally to the dragons weren't as bad as I thought around 200 years ago when I was still young...and when my parents left me to die in another dragon's cave."

"What a quick change of heart, knowing that you're always as dark as your scales."

"Let me continue. Well...this is not the thing you can take from me but...I regained my desire to mate again after so many years. After her death, I pursued the life of the evil dragon you knew, but here, in this ruined dragon city, I found another love from a dragon far older than me."

Avila gasped, "You mean...Legna?! Are you some kind of a sick bastard?"

"I have no intentions at first, but seeing that she's so kind, so energetic and still rebellious at first I thought she was still around a century or so. I loved her from deep within my heart for many times in century, but...her rider is rather protective..."

"You killed him?"

"No! The child-like white-haired dragon-eyed warrior knew that our age gap is too much because he was the one that revealed her age. I was shocked. I never heard a dragon can live for more than ten millennia. Anyway, she tried to console me, though...saying that she stopped aging after she reached a century, and staying young forever with her rider. I wanted to at least mate with her, knowing that I still need an offspring after the previous...died."

Somehow Xiciro stopped talking when staring at Avila, but he then turned his sight at Legna.

"Then that day happened.... It was just a cold morning and we have just waked up when a group of dragons attacked us. Many died, and we're trying to hold the crumbling place, but then...that small warrior...he didn't saw a dragon behind him and...the next moment I realize, the child was impaled by the claw, full of blood. Legna and I realized suddenly that the human died, and after the battle, she was so depressed that she started to become insane. I wanted to help her but...many years later...I don't know how to help her again. I..."

Avila now realized that her once enemy was crying.... She felt the sympathy over the dragon. She didn't care whether the story was genuine or not. The emotion coming out from the dragon was pure sadness. The death dragon then turned her body and staring at Cynder, saying, "Maybe you two need to go for a while."

"Is it okay for you?"

"We're alright. We're acquaintances, after all."

When the dragons left to another place, Cynder said, "Raise your head. You're pitiful."

"H...huh?"

"I know your sadness when being left by a loved one," said Avila. "You can hate the whole world, but moving on is important. There are many ways to cure sadness, but never to descend into madness like poor Legna did. You just need to understand our situation here. Dragons and humans are alike. They are not superior to each other, only we are too arrogant to know the fact. Xiciro, dragons also have feelings. That's the thing that makes us like humans and not beasts. We're sentient beings not solely driven by instinct to survive while maintaining the animalistic traits we had, also to survive. I doubt you have never endured all of those, right?"

"It's...true."

"Then don't make me sick on what shit you're trying to say and talk to me like a proud dragon! We'll find how to cure Legna. You did say no other dragons except Shariot and me knew about your doings, right?"

Xiciro somehow returned to his usual composure, but had changed to that of a normal talking dragon than the once arrogant dragon Avila knew. He raised his head and said, "Yes, actually. You both knew about my past, but I wish she won't mind about me."

"Do you have any idea where the inhabitants here lived now?"

"From one dragon I once helped before he left, he said 'Why don't you go to Qeveriyt city? It's a settlement to the north of here. I'm sure the dragons there would appreciate your help.' Guess we must find Qeveriyt."

"Then that's our destination, then," said Avila while opening her feather-covered wings, astonishing Xiciro. She made a wing movement before he lifted from the ground and airborne in an instant. Avila then identified the north from the wind current. She turned her head down and said, "We must reach the settlement before nightfall. There's a reason why this place is underground."

"Right...how about..."

"We can't take Legna, not with her current mental condition," interrupted Xiciro. "But...how can she survive without me..."

Without making a noise Avila made a gesture to Sannourah. The demon dragon stepped forward and touched Legna, making her sleep. Then, he touched a wall with one of his front paws and a portal materialized with Yorloka at the other side. Sannourah talked to his friend for a while before Yorloka took Legna into the portal, while it disappeared under Sannourah's command.

"Interesting...inter-dimensional portal. You have an exceptionally unique friend, Avila," said Xiciro with a smile. "It would be a pleasure to study you better..."

"Eh..."

"Uh...San, he's just kidding," said Cynder while expressing concern. Xiciro's tone was like as if he really was trying to cut Sannourah open with his sharp claws.