FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Don't forget to check the previous chapters to get character description! Please comment as well. Thank you!

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Right at the border of the midnight dragons' black dragons' terrain was a new world. There was so much beyond that border that Xenorosth didn't know of. He could learn so much! It was an exciting thought. Perhaps someone along the way could show him how to shoot ice. At least, he could shoot fire now. The ability came and went with his feelings. If he was frustrated or excited, he could easily burn the woods. If he was demoralized or depressed though, he would have difficulty even conjuring a spark. He would have to ask Ariel to teach him more attacks.

Ariel! He had completely forgotten about his mother in his rage. He neglected to say good-bye. "Crap!" Xenorosth exclaimed. It was too late for him to turn back now. He was at his new frontier: The black dragons' territory. He wondered how long it would be before he reached his destination, the fire dragons' turf.

He wondered about what terrain if he would pass though. Mountains? Volcanoes? Plains? Ridges? Cliffs? What would he eat there? Where would he find water? Xenorosth shook his head. Too many questions! His mind was wondering from the task at hand. He had to get to the other side of the black dragons' area. He was sure that Yamizephyr would have asked his friends to keep an eye out for him. He wondered how many friends he had. He chuckled glad that it wasn't an army after him.

He started forth on his trek. He quickly realized that almost everything in the black dragons' realms had a lot of stone hills. Every so often it had woods. He assumed that's where the residents would hunt and drink. That posed a problem. He would have to into a high concentration of the ones he was trying to avoid to survive the long trek. He was sure that his ability to teleport would come in handy here.

He once accidentally stumbled on someone's conversation. Just being nosey he had to listen in.

"Have you heard? That hatchling escaped Yamizephyr again. He either must be good at evading others, or be really lucky. Yamizephyr's the best fighter and hunter in this entire land! The only one who has ever bested him in battle was Ariel." One of the black dragons said. He had yellow eyes, black scales, dull claws and stained horns. Overall, it seemed that he didn't care much about his appearance.

"Aye. It's a shame really. If the leader of the black dragons' can't capture him then who can?" said the other. He looked like the first dragon, but he took more interest in his appearance. At least his claws and horns where sharp.

"No clue."

"Who would?"

"Yamzephyr, of course!"

They both laughed and flew off into the night. Just before he was spotted, he made himself invisible.

As they both left Xenorosth's field of view, Xenorosth had a sinking feeling. He was the leader of the black dragons? He might just send an army after him. But that would start a war though. He didn't think that he would be dumb enough to trigger a war over one person. The thought of it made Xenorosth grin with amusement.

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Ariel hissed vehemently. Yamizephyr had gone too far this time! He first makes a mockery of her, butts into her personal life, then chases off her son. The thought of it made her want to turn that menace into mincemeat! She crushed a few rocks in her claws. She had taken enough abuse. But where was Xenorosth? He had not came back for a week. She would have to contact him later, mind-to-mind. She had more pressing matters. Everyone was panicking. That last invasion by Yamizephyr worried the citizens of this realm. This was not to be allowed!

Ariel went over to her friend, Isabella, for help. She had a few favors to ask of her.

"Isabella? Are you here?" Ariel asked into her lair. It was fairly big. It had a 60-foot high, 40-foot wide entrance. A blue dragon that almost looked exactly like Ariel emerged from the cavern. She was about 45 feet tall, her claws, horns, and spinal spikes were all well polished. Her sapphire scales gleamed in the faint moonlight that the eternal night gave in the realms of darkness. Her demeanor was more serious even then Ariel's. She looked ready to fight to the death.

"Yes Ariel? Is there anything I can do? If it's to help slay those wretched black dragons for bothering your son and disturbing this civilization's tranquility, then I shall happily oblige! I say you should declare war! You are the leader! Something must be done! Shall we take no action while we let those cruel, malicious fiends take what is most precious to us? No! Never! I shall never allow it." Isabella asked and ranted.

Ariel could tell that she was showing her belligerent side. It amused her. Isabella couldn't be blamed.

"Sorry Isabella, but I need you to spread the word that my son has gone missing. Get anyone to help you. He left right after Yamizephyr told him his heritage. He gave me no chance to tell him lightly. Poor Xenorosth... Everyone must keep an eye on him. I have the feeling that he's heading into trouble," Ariel stated. Isabella's eyes widened. She seemed appalled to hear such a tragic incident.

"I'll be right on it." She said. She flew off into the distant waves of the midnight blue sky. Ariel looked up at the bright blue moon. She hoped Xenorosth would follow it south to the sea. There was some decent shelter there. She looked at the sky and pointed located the other two moons: red and purple. She thought about how the might guide him

The red pointed north, towards the fire dragons' and black dragons' realms. Unless Xenorosth could make it all the way to the fire dragons' realms, he'd be in a lot of danger following that moon. The purple moon was slightly better. The lands that way were vast. The rest of the continent and its inhabitants would be that way. It could be a good thing. The people there could keep custody of him and contact her to let her know that he was safe. However, there was always was the chance that someone would kidnap him for his or her own use. Despicable maybe, but you never know who's out there.

She didn't know what worried her more. Was it her motherly instincts, or the fact that he was the next in line to be the Dark Guardian? She had not mentioned it before, but the truth was that Xenorosth was going to be the 6th Dark Guardian. She was going to say that, but he ran away before she could say a thing. He held great power. If he were taught to wield those powers for the wrong reason, he would pose a problem for everyone. The Dark Guardian's only limitations in his job were retirement and death. So far no one has died being the Dark Guardian. They all chose to retire. But if the Dark Guardian were to trouble, then killing him or her would be the only way to stop them.

Ariel shook her head. She was thinking of the worst-case scenario. She tried to reassure herself. She had taught him about the moons, and she taught him many methods of evasion. Teleporting, illusions, invisibility spells. Xenorosth knew them all. It was just how he used them.

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The red moon was bright at the moment. Xenorosth was using it to guide him to the fire dragons' region. To go this far was a feat quite remarkable for his age and skill. He was surprised he wasn't spotted yet. Maybe it was just a lack of self-confidence. He really never had much faith in himself. His mother was always there. He was never alone in any major predicaments like this one except for Yamizephyr's attack that Yamizephyr claimed to put part of his soul in him. And he got out of that by pure luck! His luck would eventually have to run out.

Xenorosth decided it was time to get a drink. He located a lush green forest a good distance away. It seemed a good spot to find water, and even, perhaps, to get a bite to eat. Xenorosth focused on the distant image he was looking at and quickly teleported there. He set an invisibility spell on himself. Now unless someone was intent on finding someone who had used an invisibility spell, then he would be just fine. He had to be careful still to avoid anyone. The senses of smell and hearing were very keen with all dragons. Xenorosth quickly entered the woods. He scanned for a source of water in the vicinity. One was quickly found. Not too far from the edge lay a pond. Xenorosth hid, observing the location. No one was around either. It was almost too good to be true. It made Xenorosth nervous. Xenorosth slowly and cautiously came out from his hiding spot and took a sip of the clear water. It felt good on his parched throat.

A twig snapped in the distance. Xenorosth's ears perked. Someone was coming. He quickly flew up, trying to flee, but only to be stopped by an invisible barrier. Just great... He briefly Xenorosth saw two black- scaled dragons. He didn't get a good look at them however, for he was too busy trying to get out.

"What do we have here? Why is there a midnight dragon hatchling in the midst of black dragons? Its dangerous you know. Come to me and I'll keep you safe." One of the dragons mocked. Xenorosth looked back, his red eyes flashing. He had to go. The other dragon shot a lightning rod at him. Xenorosth was slightly too slow. He couldn't teleport in time and the lightning bolt hit him dead in the side. Searing pain shot through his stomach. He fell to the ground and collapsed. Fading in and out of consciousness. He could faintly hear the two dragons.

"I don't believe it! It's Xenorosth!"

"How can you tell? He wouldn't come up here unless he had a reason."

"The red eyes! They match our leaders perfectly! Its Yamizephyr's son for sure! We'd best summon him right away."

Xenorosth couldn't hold on to consciousness any longer. He fainted right on the spot. He was worried now. He didn't know whether he would be set back. And how would he escape? What a mess...

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Yamizephyr had gotten a mental message not too long ago. Xenorosth was in custody. Yamizephyr was still amazed. He was told that he was caught in the middle of his turf! He was either very foolish, or he had a plan. Either way, he was more then happy to accept his pet. He had also given the orders to have him teleported here. Soon his prize will arise. Yamizephyr was almost sympathetic to him though. Hearing he was shot in the side by lightning must have hurt. But I guess what is what he got for resisting the inevitable.

A female dragon, her scales a little grayer then most of the dragons in the surroundings, came into the room. She lowered her head as if bowing and said, " Your hatchling is here. He is still knocked out, however."

"Send him in then. I think he and I should stay together in private, so we will be going back to my lair." Yamizephyr ordered. He was sure solitude would break the child. It was too bad he wouldn't just come to him without struggle. Yamizephyr wrapped himself in his own thoughts while Xenorosth was brought out to him. Xenorosth was twitching still from the lightning strike. It was improbable that Xenorosth would be conscious for a long time. It was too bad too. In order to complete the spell he had started in the midnight dragons' terrain, Xenorosth had to be awake.

Xenorosth then disappeared. Yamizephyr blinked. What happened? He was watching him lay there, then poof! The little dragon must have pulled a feint! Clever. Most clever indeed. Xenorosth was a prize worth the wait. Yamizephyr was slightly disappointed, though. It was another near miss. It was getting tiresome. Yamizephyr sighed. That little hatchling's mind is complex. A swift thinker he is indeed.

"We will meet again. And next time we are both awake." Yamizephyr mumbled to himself.

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Xenorosth was gasping for air. He had teleported just in time to escape. It was lucky that no one noticed that he had awakened while he was being carried. He was surprised how far he managed to get. He was outside of Yamizephyr's cave. He took note of how it looked like and kept the image in his head the entire time. He still had to wait until that dragon let go of him. If he tried to teleport while someone was touching him then he might accidentally take that person as well.

Xenorosth tried to walk, but his leg gave out. Xenorosth growled in frustration of his injury. He had move away from this location. That was certain. Now Yamizephyr knew he was somewhere in his own territory. Xenorosth focused on what was in front of him. He teleported again, heading towards the red moon in the sky. He went a good mile, more. That would be a decent distance. It came at a price. Xenorosth's mind became sluggish. It was incredibly hard to think. He'd be lucky to cast another spell for a while. He started a trek north toward the red moon once more. Each step caused him anguish and agony to fill his body.

How was he supposed to keep this up? The long hours dragged on and on. Time itself seemed to stop. Xenorosth felt he was making very little progress. Everything started to become blurred. His eyes must have been too tired to function properly anymore. What was happening? Had he pushed himself to his limit? What would happen now?

Suddenly, Xenorosth could saw a red figure in the black night rise until he blended into the red, glowing moon. He couldn't distinguish any features of the creature. It was probably a dragon. The figure started honing in on Xenorosth. As the feature became more distinct, Xenorosth's suspicion was proven true. It indeed was a dragon.

Xenorosth felt another wave of pain from the lightning. Between the spells and his injury, Xenorosth failed to stay up. He fell to the ground due to his own weakness. He tried to push himself up only to collapse back onto the ground. He looked at the red dragon. Xenorosth's failing eyes still distorted his or her feature. Steadily, his vision became worse and worse. The last thing Xenorosth saw was the dragon land right in front of him. From then he closed his eyes. He felt the dragon lift him up and take him away. He forgot of his goals. He needed rest. He let the rhythmic beat of the red dragons wings put him to sleep. Up. Down. Up. Down. Up... Down...