Silver flew hard that night, jerking this way and that in the strong ocean winds and struggling to stay aloft. It had been a long time since she had done any sort of real exercise, and she still hadn't fully recovered from the previous day. Still, she flew, refusing to let up. She needed to get as far away from that place as possible.
Even so she knew she would have to rest soon. There was no point in escaping if she just collapsed in exhaustion and drowned in the ocean. With her wings aching for a rest and her breath coming in slightly ragged gasps, she continued to fly. A mist of rain had begun to fall as well, nothing too bad. But it didn't make flying any easier.
A large black shape emerged in the distance, causing the dragoness to falter in the air, gulping slightly. It looked like a large human ship in the darkness, with a strange mound in the middle. For a moment she considered turning around, but flying back toward A.O.D.H was definitely a bad idea. Maybe if she flew high enough then she would be able to pass over without them noticing.
Hoping she was right, she flapped her wings a little harder, sending her higher into the sky. The burning in her joints was getting close to unbearable now, and at one point one of her wings seized up, causing her to snarl angrily. She managed to catch herself again before she fell, but it worried her. She wouldn't last much longer out there, not as she was anyway.
As she got closer to what she thought was a boat, she couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't a large ship; it was a small island that was hard to see through the misty rain and darkness. Without a second thought Silver folded in her wings and dived down toward the island in eagerness. It had rather white beaches, illuminated by the rather pale moonlight, and a small mountain, more of a hill really, with a forest of welcoming palm trees. It was maybe a kilometre long and half that distance wide. How she mistook it for a human ship she had no idea.
She grunted as she came in for half a crash-landing on the sandy beach, sending a spray of it into the air. For a moment she just laid there, her exhausted wings spread out on either side of her chest moving up and down with each fractured breath. She was exhausted, more then she realised. She was lightheaded and the world seemed to spin around. Her eyes began to close, and before she knew it... everything descended into darkness.
* * *
Consciousness slowly began to come across her, and the first thing she realised was the fact she was moving, along soft ground. Being dragged was more accurate. Which was also strange. Since when had she ever been dragged anywhere?
Her eyes slowly opened, and she hissed slightly when a piecing light shone directly into her eyes. Strange sounds also echoed across this strange place. Bird calls, and waves crashing in the distance, heavy footsteps. It was like she was... outside. And that was when she remembered, remembered her escape from A.O.D.H, and collapsing exhausted on the beach. Then why was she being dragged?
Her eyes widened as she looked down her stomach to see a large metal hand gripped around her tail, dragging her across the beach with little care as to what happened as it did. A snarl rumbled through her and she quickly pulled with her tail, the fear and refusal to get captured giving her a sudden burst of energy. The robot mech had a tight grip on her however, and the head of the thing turned to look at her.
"The dragon's awake," the human inside spoke into his radio.
Silver hissed and opened her mouth, shooting a ball of metal into the cockpit of the machine, causing a large dent and making it stagger backwards. Unfortunately it didn't let go of her tail. The dragoness quickly rolled to her feet and tried to pull herself free, digging her claws into the sand and pulling hard. The sand offered little grip however, and the far stronger robot simply dragged her backwards, lifting her into the air.
She roared at it, spraying a large amount of elronium metal onto the cockpit, blocking the camera that allowed the human to see. He let out a small cry, and let go. She landed nimbly on her feet and swung her tail around, shifting it into a large scythe and striking it across the robot's legs, slicing easily through the metal. Once she was satisfied that it wouldn't follow her, she leapt into the air again and flew as fast as she could away from A.O.D.H.
The fog in her mind still hadn't disappeared, much to her annoyance. She guessed that they had done something to cause this during her time in the room. The time she forgot, but she couldn't figure out why. It made her a little frightened, and at one point she used her wing to brush her head, just to make sure the device still wasn't there.
Something else also bothered her. Ever since her escape from A.O.D.H, everything had seemed a little... different. Like the colours she was used to were a slightly different hew, or the waves below rose and fell in more of a pattern then they usually did, or the sun shone brighter and hotter then normal. It made no sense to her, and when she looked closely everything just looked the same as usual. Still, it confused her.
After a couple of hours of flight she found another island, larger then the previous one, and landed on it for another small rest. This time she didn't stay as long, paranoia keeping her going, and after another day of flying a large stretch of land appeared before her, as wide as the ocean. The sight of it made her heart jump and she couldn't help but let out a bungle of joy. Land! Finally! Beating her wings a little harder she pushed herself forward toward it.
That night she slept in a cave she scouted out. It was rather small, more an overhang then a cave, but it was the first time she had been in one for almost a year. The distinct earthly smell of moss and damp rock walls flooded over her, and she let out a small sigh of relief. It didn't matter that the smell was slightly different to what she remembered.
She curled herself up in a corner and rested her head on her tail. She knew she hadn't quite escaped the dragon hunters yet, but the cave she was in and the fact that she had finally reached land boosted her confidence. She could escape them now, and she could eat as well. Though she would take care of that in the morning when she woke up.
* * *
Silver feasted on her first kill in nine months eagerly, some sought of wild pig she had found snuffling outside her cave. It had been surprisingly easy, and it was very filling. After she finished she set about washing herself in the ocean, shaking out the blood and sand that was stuck in her scales. It wasn't as good as the baths from A.O.D.H, but it was worth it.
She then rose into the air on a calm breeze, closing her eyes and sighing softly. She knew where she was, at least generally. She had landed in India, near the point at the bottom of the country. Thankfully there weren't many humans about at the moment, but she knew she would probably be seen rather quickly. But if she was in India then she just needed to continue to fly along the coast. It would help keep her bearings as she travelled back to Sky Mountain.
Even though she knew she was being hunted, she took that day slowly, more gliding then flying, and allowing the wind to do most of the work. Her wings ached slightly from all the flying she had been doing, but gliding didn't hurt too bad. A small sigh escaped her and she closed her eyes, allowing herself to enjoy the feeling of wind under her. It had been so long.
She couldn't wait to see her friends again. They would be amazed that she had managed to escape, all by herself as well. She looked forward to seeing their faces as she glided into the mountain, and chuckled to herself at the thought of what they would do. One of either Zepos or Retrix would likely try and steal a kiss, Raize would probably be speechless. Iraliene would probably have grudging admiration, while her son would probably be a little annoyed. She guessed Gravon hadn't missed her too much. Celestia would be excited as well, and she couldn't wait to see the light dragon's hatchlings. They had probably grown quite a bit in the time she had been away.
Silver smiled, though inside a pang of guilt emerged within her. She had left the others behind. Blaze... and her other friends she had made in A.O.D.H, they didn't know she had escaped, and probably wouldn't find out from their captors either, unless some rumour got out. She narrowed her eyes, making a solemn vow that as soon as she got the chance she would fly back to the base and rescue them.
Five days passed for the dragoness as she worked slowly toward her goal. At some points she had taken to walking, just to give her wings a little bit of a rest, but she was in no hurry. She made an effort to avoid all human contact, though sometimes it was a bit hard and she was seen. Thankfully neither A.O.D.H nor D.E.D found her. It would have made her life extremely difficult if they had. She didn't know if she would be able to fight them off again.
As the mountain ranges that housed Sky Mountain came into view a huge weight fell from her shoulders. She was free! Home free. She doubted A.O.D.H would try another attack like the one before; they had lost many people in that battle. So they wouldn't be able to get her again. The machine wouldn't be built, and even though she had no idea what it did, the fact made her feel a little safer.
She didn't fly over the mountains, a little too exhausted to attempt that, and instead turned into the valleys, letting the wind tunnels present carry her through. The greens of mountain plants and the grey/red rocky outcrops made her smile. This was an amazing place, one that she was beginning to think of as a home, more then she did of Dragon Valley. It was a strange thought, but while she was captured she missed Sky Mountain more then she missed Dragon Valley. With all its faults, the haven was a great place for a dragon to live.
As she grew close to where she knew the illusion was set her excitement increased and she beat her wings that little bit faster. Her journey was coming to a close. She turned and glided deeper into a valley, towards the seemingly never-ending mountain ranges stretching into the distance. Without hesitation she surged forward, the illusion rippling around her and the mountain revealed.
The sight never grew old. The large mountain stretching upwards into the sky, its peak touching the clouds. Dragons flew around it in small groups, likely training for the unlikely chance of another attack. They had been well prepared for the previous one, but they had simply been overwhelmed by the amount of soldiers they had been forced to fight.
Down below a newly grown forest shone in the sunlight, the brilliant green strangely vibrant, like sparkling emeralds glittering in the sun. The river of water that flowed from the mouth of the mountain flowed strongly, the colour the same as the sky and as it fell into a waterfall the spray spread out amongst the forest undergrowth, creating a web of small creeks. The soft scent of new growth also flowed through the air, creating an almost trance like atmosphere amongst the dragons.
Silver breathed in everything at once, and beamed her smile. It really was quite an amazing place. She turned and beat her tired wings one last time, sending her toward the entrance. Dragons had begun noticing her now. Gasps of surprise followed by excited whispers echoed from the crowd. A few of them broke away from the group, flying hurriedly toward the entrance to spread the news that the silver dragon had returned.
She glided down and landed softly on the smooth stone, her wings collapsing by her side. Groups of dragons had followed her, all staring with absolute disbelief. Some seemed a little suspicious, but mostly glad. It seemed that many had missed her. The thought made her smile.
The first dragon that really caught her eye however was a flash of purple scales as the void dragon tumbled through the centre, flying as fast as he could toward the dragoness. She smiled when she saw him. The void drake landed in front of her, and hesitated, as if making sure that she really was in front of him.
"Silver?" Retrix whispered in disbelief, his deep purple scales shining with an odd brilliance.
"Yes?" she replied, looking at him for the first time in nine months.
Her voice seemed to jump him into action and he leapt forward, wrapping her in his wings with a cry of joy. She closed her eyes and purred, leaning into his embrace. She was home... finally. She was home.
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Hey guys! New chapter! I hope you enjoyed. Vote if you did and comment what you thought. It was a little rushed, but I think it was good. The next chapter will be out as soon as I can get it. See Ya!
Pennator^^