FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Chapter 15

A strong wind howled through the trees below and the black clouded sky just like it was carrying a thousand screams with itself. A terrifying roar of nature that would freeze blood in every good hearted creature, however she wasn't one of them. For her it was something else, something she could listen to all day and night, something strongly exciting- a sign of a forthcoming disaster. A disaster she will sow, a disaster that will break the spirit of her enemies, a signal that the ground will taste blood and to satisfy the earth's growing hunger she will add numbers to the already big pile of corpses. They will recognize her as a harbinger of destruction, after this people will surely tremble at the sound of her name. A greatly intriguing vision.

She sat on the outcropping with closed eyes and wings neatly folded on her back, her breaths were deep and slow as she savored the sweet embrace of darkness and the chilling sound of the wind. This is her time and she swore to herself that whatever she will do, it will be unforgettable. This is the moment when she will deprive the people of their last ounces of faith just like the clouds deprive the sky of the glorious sun's rays. She sighed, this is where the remains of the War Dragons took refuge and this is where they will meet their end and there is nothing and no one who can stop her.

A quite bright light poked at her closed eyelids, firstly she ignored it fully concentrated on the howling wind, completely lost in it as she was listening to it's addictive screams. Minutes have passed but the light still bothered her with its presence, with a furious growl she opened her green eyes to check what is preventing her enjoyment. She saw a column of bright light which found a gap in the black clouds defenses,a sign perhaps that there is a way even from the most dire situation. The beam of light infuriated her but when she thought about it, this may turn into her favor, if the column of light is a sign of something good, she will blacken it with her wings, she will steal their hope.

With a smirk she looked down from the outcropping, there was a battle going on, even from here she could hear the shouts, war cries and the clashing of weapons. She observed her army, many apes went unhesitatingly to the fight knowing that most of them won't make it back, it didn't bother her in the slightest, that's why they are under her command after all, to follow her every whim, even if this will be the last thing they will do. She twitched with excitement and anticipation when she looked at her enemies, that force not only consisted frail and weak cats but also dragons, her own kind and that thought, that single thought about slaying her own kin, to rip their scales with her claws, to crash their bones with her jaws, to taste their blood in her mouth, all of those things forced her heart to beat faster. She closed her eyes and shivered, this will be something worth remembering.

She couldn't stop observing the scene below, under the black sky the many flashes of spells or the cones of flames released by the dragons created a perfect scene. Not to mention the screams, oh the screams of soldiers devoured by the magic's destructive nature, that is the music she wants to hear, that is the sound that makes her black heart beat even harder. The flying dragons do a great job in shrinking the number of her soldiers, for every one the apes shoot down they kill at least twenty of them. That's good, it was a reason for her to focus on the battlefield, to find the dragon responsible for the most damage, the dragon who gives her enemies vigor to fight with his small victories. She narrowed her pupils on the winged shapes, if she locates the drake, she will bring him down, announcing her arrival in the most refined way possible.

The battlefield takes places near a mountainside range, behind the enemy lines many openings could be seen, the hiding place of the War Dragons was finally discovered. But the death of these ferocious warriors is nothing compared to the things she will find inside the cave-innocents. Old ones, mothers and children, practically all families were located inside those caves, nothing can't be compared to the fading life of an innocent being and the feeling is all the sweeter if she is the reason why the life ebbs away in the first place.

The place where the battlefield took place was a hilly terrain, many elevations dotted the landscape below, some trees even managed to prevail while some other were burning just like a huge torch. All things considered the enemy found a perfect spot to make their last stand, the hills prevented her foot soldier to launch a proper assault, whenever they tried to push on up the hills they were instantly slaughtered by the defenders who already occupied the elevations. However she was prepared for something like this, mercenaries as greedy as they are created some perfect creatures to fight in rough terrain, the Death Hounds scaled the hills easily and thanks to their four legs they gained a tremendous speed while descending the small mountains, tearing a hole through the enemy defenses. Also fliers like Dreadwings prevented the War Dragons from dominating the sky completely.

However Dreadwings need a raider to function properly, otherwise these stupid creatures attack their prey headlong, which usually means that they are killed before they can do any damage, it wasn't enough to take the sky from intelligent creatures like the dragons but it was enough to stall them. It was finally the time, she has spotted a leader amongst the drakes, she could see how he was commanding his troops while sowing mayhem amongst her ranks, a true leader.

With the last evil grin she retreated from the outcropping to prepare herself for battle, pieces of armor were already prepared, they were as black as her onyx scales and had long, sturdy looking spines almost everywhere. Firstly she slid her tail between smooth plates, using the tip of her tail she attached the joints to her body. Secondly she raised on her hind legs and put on an armor which protected her chest, underbelly and back. The obsidian alloy seemed to glisten under the dark sky. She turned her head to get used to the feeling of something bulky encumbering her neck before she landed on all fours again. She put on another pieces of armor, they covered her forelegs and hind paws. They ended with silvery insets which fit her claws perfectly. Lastly she slid a dark helmet on her head, her emerald eyes shone brightly under the dark helmet just like a pair of gems.

She traced her paw down her neck, as if admiring the armor, however after a while she jerked back her paw just like she was electrocuted. For a brief moment she felt horrible about the thing she was about to do, she is preparing for battle with her own kind, for the first time in her life doubt and fear filled her heart. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, just like she expected the pitiful emotions were gone, weakness makes her sick. She opened her eyes, her emerald orbs once again shone with sheer malice, an evil grin formed itself on her black snout, she was ready for a fight.

She returned to the outcropping and looked down, the battle was still raging on below and the dragon she hunted for was still there. She looked at the column of light, and waited until it shone directly on her prey. She smirked, it will be a glorious entrance, spreading her black wings she took a step forward and leapt from the outcropping. She kept making little circles in the air, while she waited for the perfect opportunity, she wanted him to feel a moment of victory, a moment of hope before she strikes him down stealing all the faith in one single attack.

That moment just came, she saw the dragon returning from battle, he took to the sky and roared triumphantly, some other dragons followed in his wake. She laughed bitterly, and looked at the column of light once again before she dived. With her wings close to her body wind started to whizz around her while she sped up instantly, she was just like a quarrel shot from a huge crossbow, a very unexpected and deadly quarrel. Just when she was about to reach the light she spread her onyx wings, all nearby dragons looked up to see what could darken the sky above them so quickly.

Their leader had no time to admire the view since momentarily a black shape enveloped him and brought him down. She used her Shadow element to enhance her silvery claws with the dark power before she sank them into the dragons chest while piercing his armor. They spun around in the air but the firm grip allowed her to control the fall, with one move just like a passionate lover she found herself on top of the dragon. Firstly his eyes were filled with shock and surprise but as soon he took a glimpse of her black snout focused returned to them as he realized what's going on. He prepared his elemental attack but it was too late, they hit the ground.

A loud thud was heard and dust raised in the air from the place they crashed. The impact took out the dragon's breath, he groaned below her but she didn't care, with a couple of swift slashes she destroyed the armor on his neck. The dragon only grunted when she snapped her powerful jaws on his throat, her teeth sank deep, tearing off bits of scales and muscles as she raised her head. Trail of blood followed her as she looked around the battlefield chewing the bit of flesh at the same time, the battle seemed to freeze for a while as every soldier, from both sides, stared at her with shocked filled eyes. She thrust her claws into the throat of the wriggling dragon below her, ending his struggle forever. She swallowed the bit of flesh and looked at her troops with fiery eyes, she spread her wings and roared so loudly that the ground began to rumble and the remaining trees began to shake.

The brief moment of awkward silence was over, her troops emitted a war cry like they have never before, making the opposite army hesitate for a while. The battle was renewed, both sides charged each other once again and as she was caught between a rock and a hard place, she couldn't shake of the feeling of complete surprise when some cats and a bunch of dragons charged her completely blinded by rage, she laughed, it seems stupidity has no bounds.

Even if her ego told her to stay and slaughter them all, the common sense of a seasoned warrior told her otherwise. As much as it hurt her she listened to the latter, no need to risk getting an injury from a furious mob, not to mention the angered dragons above her. She left the carcass and began to run, run as far away as possible from the light, the roars of the troops and dragons both from the ground and air told her that they were right behind her tail. It didn't bother her however, her graceful body allowed her to move swiftly, cleverness and speed dominate over strength and agility is her most known virtue.

She was about to leave the repulsive light and enter the darkness, her own element. She felt as the shadows were embracing her, inviting her for a dance and she was flattered by it, she swirled in the darkness, letting it to take control over her until she became one with it and melted within its embrace. The onyx armor and her black scales allowed her to disappear into the shadows, she was just a blurry shape for everyone brave enough to pursue her.

The soldiers who chased her hesitated, she seemed like a monster to them, the one the children speak of, the monster from the closet. This time however this comparison was correct and the blood freezing shriek that came out from the darkness only confirmed this. Most of the soldiers started to flee at the sound of it, while some other were completely paralyzed, those were the ones who saw a pair of demonic green eyes before everything turned black just like somebody would turn off the light.

Her blade like tip cut through them with ease, they began falling one by one just like trees cut by lumberjacks. There was no time to focus on them now as she could hear dragons descending towards her and even felt the surge of power when most likely every possible elemental attack knows in this world was heading towards her. She smirked, when the magical strikes and the dragons were close enough she used her Shadow ability and sank into the ground.

The attacks hit an empty ground in a show of different colored sparks, soon the descending dragons arrived, they had to make a turn near the ground to raise into the air again or else they would crash. That was the moment she waited for, that was the opportunity she couldn't squander, she popped up from the ground just like a shark jumps from the water, the momentum she accumulated allowed her to head straight for a dragon who was the last in the line.

Amongst the sound of armors grinding against each other, grunts of struggle and angry roars, she managed to get a hold of the drake using her shadow empowered claws. They began to twist in the air gaining the attention of the nearby dragons, but she didn't care she was only focused on her prey, she even ignored the stinging pain when one of the spines on the drake's armor accidently managed to find a chink in her armor. They swirled in the air and the moment their eyes met she used her Poison Breath ability and spit a boiling glob of lethal venom onto the dragon's snout. He stopped his struggle immediately as he began to choke, cough and sometimes even scream when the poison hissed and burnt through his scales and down his throat.

They hit the ground with her standing victoriously on top of the dragon who was desperately trying to cling to life using his last sparks of strength. She spit contemptuously on the struggling drake and left him alone, she enjoyed watching him suffer. The group of flying drakes began to charge her again, however the moment she looked at them an evil grin formed itself on her snout and she began to laugh mischievously. The chaos she created made the dragons lose their concentration and her troops didn't linger and took an advantage of this opportunity. Every flying dragon was tackled by a Dredwing, the bat-like creatures hissed and barred their poison filled fangs while they attacked the drakes. Their riders were barking orders, or even attacking themselves accompanied by the sound of many painful shouts, roars and grunts. They have dominated the sky.

She sniffed the air, between the typical scent of a bloodshed she could smell something different close by, didn't take her long to realize that she was smelling a cat's fur. She spun around, just in time in fact since a sharp spear tried to stab her, the warrior who was carrying it couldn't shake off the feeling of surprise after his miss. She didn't worry about such things, the moment she set eyes upon the arrogant feline she opened her maw wide open and snapped her teeth moments later on the cat's body cutting him in half. She spit him out, ripped of the armor and devoured him in front of the next wave of attackers, she made sure they noticed him vanishing down her gullet.

Pure hatred painted itself on their faces after her little show, without hesitation they charged, yelling loudly as they did so. She licked her snout, and began a charge of her own, she was a good fighter but they had numbers, no matter how agile she was, it was impossible to dodge every strike, however she had a few tricks up her sleeve for situations like this. After gaining some speed she jumped and channeled her Wind powers, with the elemental energy flowing through her body she began to spun around. She made faster and faster turns with each passing second, and as her momentum increased so did the sound of the roaring wind, it looked like the wind was screaming all around her, just like it wanted to be near the black dragoness.

With each spin, she not only gained speed but also dragged the debris from across the battlefield towards her, she used the Twister ability, meaning that she transformed into a swirling tornado. As she adopted the form of one of the nature's reapers, she went straight at the charging wave of attackers. Not only she tossed the soldiers in every directions just like rag dolls, but also tore apart instantly those, who were unfortunate enough and found themselves in the middle of the twister, they just exploded, sending streams of blood everywhere. Bodies were not the only thing that were tossed in all directions, her tornado form also hurled debris everywhere, weapons, pieces of armor, rocks and many other things were thrown at the approaching soldiers, making life harder for those who managed to avoid the swirling dragoness.

She turned and turned and turned, making her way through the enemies lines with ease, she could see their frail forms flying everywhere and that was the sight that kept her going. She will continue her attack until there is no one left standing, she will kill them all, but that pleasure was taken away from her. She hit something solid, something thick and indestructible. The wind stopped howling, and all the debris fell onto the ground instantly.

The impact made her dizzy, she quickly shook her head to regain her senses and the moment they returned to her she saw a huge and thick stone wall in front of her. Earth. The enemies seeing that she lost her power began their charge, however she didn't need to budge since her own troops managed to catch up with her, a battle was commenced between the two armies, allowing her to find the one responsible for stopping her fun.

It didn't take long to notice a big earth dragon towering above the fighting soldiers, judging by the armor he wore he was quite a strong drake. It didn't bother her in the slightest, because she knew that some pitiful common dragon won't stop her, however that didn't prevent him from trying. The stone wall shook and started to collapse towards her, she quickly jumped out of its way but to her surprise the moment the wall crashed on the ground it exploded sending small rocks directly at her.

It caught her by surprise, she wasn't fast enough to block the debris with her wings, some small chunks of rock managed to find a way through her defense, cutting her just below the left eye. She impulsively touched her wound and the moment she lowered her paw she saw blood on it, with an furious snort she flicked it away. The moment she looked at the dragon something struck her chest, bending her armor as a result, when the projectile exploded into many small chunks of stone she knew that it was an earth missile.

She growled, enough is enough, it was the last time when the drake could feel that he has a chance in this fight, oh he couldn't be more wrong. The drake stomped the ground and soon the terrain below her started to shake, she instantly jumped backwards and as she did so a large spike burst from the ground in front of her just to hide down the earth moments later. The shaking didn't stop so using her natural grace she started to run directly at the dragon, it wasn't an easy run, she had to dodge every spike on her way, she was even forced sometimes to leap into the air but whenever she did so she had to return to the ground since the drake sent an earth missile every time she was in the sky. She continued her charge on the ground, only jumping when it was absolutely necessary, she flapped her wings once or twice before returning on the ground, that way no earth missile could harm her.

With an angry roar she pounced on the dragon, they began to roll down the small hill, snapping their teeth and slashing with their claws at each other until they finally stopped rolling. The dragon was stronger than her, she ended below his firm paws, she tried to pull up but only managed to arch her upper body upwards a little before he forcefully slammed her onto the ground. He lowered his head to make a bite on her throat, her eyes flared with pure hatred, just when he was about to reach her neck she yanked her body forcefully making the dragon totter a little, but that was enough for her to puncture his cheek with the blade claw on her wing thumb.

The drake roared painfully, and as he opened his maw a bloody blade claw could be easily seen inside his mouth. In an act of vengeance he slammed her wing with his own, pulling out the claw from his cheek in a stream of blood, when the black wing moved away from his body he slashed it with his claws. She cried in pain below him when the dragon's claws cut her membranes, blood started to flow down instantly from the deep lacerations. Wasting no time, she slammed her tail against his ankle, her tail was in no position to cause any serious damage but the spines on her armor found a chink in the dragon's protection.

The drake hissed while his hind paw bent under the blow making him lose balance. She took advantage of the opportunity and kicked him off of her, as the dragon was thrown away she prepared an elemental attack but couldn't finish channeling the energy since the dragon's tail tip which resembled the end of a thick hammer struck her in the chest, knocking the breath out of her. The impact forced her to release the energy she accumulated so far, it wasn't much but it was enough to stagger her opponent even if for a short while.

She quickly pulled herself up on all fours, she was grateful for the armor, the onyx plates quelled most of the force but she could still feel her bones throbbing with a dull pain. She charged the dragon before he could get the chance to use his own breath, she gracefully dodged under the dragon's tail, sidestepped quickly to avoid his claws just to strike him with her blade- like tip, damaging his armor and drawing some blood. They exchanged blow after blow, she mostly focused on speed while her opponent concentrated on raw strength.

After a while she retreated and decided to try a different approach, this particular dragon was getting on her nerves, it was time to end this. She immediately used her elemental energy to cover herself in a coat of poison before charging. Her opponent acted just as she expected, unsure about her true intentions the dragon thought that she once again is trying to charge him so he decided to play it safe. Just to keep her as far away as possible he once again began creating the spines.

Good, he had bought her bluff, but that doesn't mean he wasn't dangerous, however with her natural agility she had no problems dodging the two first spines. Instead of avoiding the next one she jumped at it and wrapped herself around it. The dragon's eyes shot wide open when he saw as the spine hid below ground with the dragoness wrapped around it. His shock was so great that the two adjacent spines which protruded from the earth in front of him remained above ground since he stopped channeling his elemental power to fuel the attack.

She was lucky that many of her foes didn't know yet what Shadow powers are capable of, that's why the dragon remained in the same position just as she hoped he would. A shadow created itself below the dragon's paws and moments later she jumped out of it like from some kind of portal. The power she put into this trick lifted the dragon vertically high into the air, a loud gasp was a proof that he didn't expect such a move. She quickly maneuvered with agile flaps of her wings to place herself above the raising dragon while delicately pushing him forward with her tail.

Just when she gained enough altitude she spun around and extended her front paws so they were directed centrally on the dragon's belly. It was then when she began to fall pushing the dragon down with her. The blowing wind and the speed forced his wings to spread wide open, and those were the reason behind his agonizing roar since the moment he was pushed down, the two remaining spines pierced his membranes. The wound became deeper with each inch as he slid down against the artificial thorns, leaving a trail of crimson blood on their surfaces.

He roared until he finally dropped on the hilly terrain with the two thick spines piercing his wings and pinning him to the ground. The moment he hit the earth he emitted a one last deafeningly loud scream of pain. She gracefully landed on top of him and slid down moments later so his body was trapped between her paws. She could end his suffering here and now but she decided not to. With a swift move she ripped off his armor from his chest and thrust her claws deep into his scales, tearing them off when she forcefully removed her claws, trickling red blood followed them.

The dragon cried in pain and screamed even more louder when she lowered her head towards his chest and began to rip his scales and devour his flesh while he was still conscious. She kept chewing and chewing while listening to his beautiful painful screams which inspired her even more. She kept going and going until he finally couldn't take more of this sadistic torture and expired.

The battle was over, bodies littered the ground and blood flowed down the many elevations in streams. The last of the War Dragons have fallen, the hunt has cost her much, most of her troops were dead and even more were wounded. She couldn't care less, they are just meat, cannon fodder which can be replaced easily, she had all the gems in the world and the world is full of greedy cutthroats. The openings in the mountain ahead told her that it was worth it, within them were riches that only the most cruel beings would value, she was one of them.

She landed near one of the upper caves, just when her paws silently touched the ground she could hear quiet whispers and steps coming from inside. She purposely scratched the stony floor with her claw and just as she thought the barely hearable noises died instantly. She grinned and ventured into the cave wondering if life can get any better than this.

" Hello? Is anybody home?" she shouted with certain amusement and malevolence in her tone. All the noise in the cave died instantly at the sound of her voice.

She chuckled quietly and began to venture deeper into the dark cave whistling a calm melody that echoed throughout the whole den. To make things interesting she placed her paws on the ground in such a way that her claws emitted a loud click on the stony floor as she walked. An amused rumble ran through her throat when she imagined what these defenseless creatures could be feeling right now, they were trapped in this cave, with nowhere to run and the increasing sound of her voice and steps was everything they could hear.

As she walked down the dark corridor she saw a flicker of a dim light ahead that disappeared moments later, just like somebody would kill a torch. The smile on her snout grew wider, she was getting close. Despite the thick darkness she could feel that she arrived in one of the larger places in the cave, the walls weren't now scratching her scales and the ceiling seemed to be much higher.

Even if she didn't see anything she could feel that this is the place where the innocents are hiding, she could smell their fear, she could feel their fast beating hearts. She stopped walking and whistling, she stood there motionless, listening to the addictive noise and inhaling the most wonderful scent, she closed her eyes and drifted away.

With a deep sigh she opened her eyes and instantly released a shadow fire high in the ceiling, the breath illuminated the whole cave instantly. Terrified screams and cries filled the place, for a blink of a second she could see all these scared snouts and faces before the flame died down and the cave was covered in darkness once again.

Something bumped into her foreleg, she grabbed it between her claws and lifted the thing up. Judging by the horrible trembling, squeaks and little wings, she was holding a little dragon hatchling in her paw. She could barely hear the child thanks to the terrified screams of the nearby cats and dragons.

" Let's all calm down and talk like civilized beings!" she shouted angrily and silenced the crowd momentarily.

" I'm holding a kid here, I suspect that he is one of yours?"

"No!" a wavering female shout came from the darkness " Please, he is just a child!"

" Relax" she tried to calm the dragoness who was most likely his mother with a soft tone " Light up the torches so we might actually see something. We don't want him to get lost do we now?"

" Please!"

" Light up the torches" she replied coldly

There was a moment of silence and hesitation, but eventually the torches began to burn and light filled the cave.

The group wasn't as big as she expected it to be, a couple of withered cheetahs were huddled up in a corner, three young female dragons were laying on the ground. Not all dragons are born fighters, some choose a more peaceful life. Three young and small snouts were visible from below the dragonesses wings, with the one she was holding that made four children in total.

" There you go' she smiled kindly and looked at the child with caring eyes " Be good, little one, and run to your mother, ok?" she kissed the child on the forehead, and as she did so she heard a muffled scream which came from one of the dragonesses. With a mischievous smile she put down the hatchling and as soon as his paws touched the ground he scuttled with the speed of light and hid under his mother's wing, squeaking in fear.

She smiled wryly " Now when we all are here let me introduce myself" she touched her chest " I'm Cynder, you might have heard of me, if not you can always call me..." she scratched the silver choker on her neck thoughtfully " Damn I need a nickname" she shook her head and focused on the group again " Anyhoo, I have some good and bad news. The good news is that I have won, but you probably figured it out already since I'm standing right before you, duh. Even if you expected it, a little applause won't hurt, come on, don't be shy!" she exclaimed happily.

The group remained silent

"Come on!" she urged them some more with the same cheerful tone

As previously there was no reaction

Her eyes flared up with sheer anger " I need an applause!" she roared

The cornered civilians yelped in dread and began clapping instantly in a very hectic manner

" There you go! It wasn't that hard, was it?" she started to bow her head " Thank you, thank you, you are too kind. What have I done to deserve such a welcome?" she stomped her paw playfully " Oh, now I remember!"

She cleared her throat, dropping the cheerful mood and silencing the group as a result " Now it's the time for some bad news, mind you that they are bad for you not for me, that's a very important detail since no bad news follow me around. As you may know, your fathers, friends, mates or whatever won't be coming to visit you. They all are..."

She scratched the choker again " How to put it mildly?" she muttered to herself and shook her head "I've slaughtered them all, I've painted the ground with their blood and decorated the walls with their guts and all they could do was to beg me to spare their mates and children while I disemboweled them" she snorted " Bunch of whiners"

" You will pay for this!" one of the female dragons yelled, while streams of tears flown down from her eyes, with all emotions released in a single shout, she sobbed and hid behind a rock.

She rolled her eyes " Yeah, yeah, you know how many times I hear that line? Come on people, be creative!"

" Thou shan't find peace and fall under the weight of thy deeds, those who disdain pure life shall become its prey" a rasped feline voice reached her.

She pointed a claw on the old cheetah " Now that's what I'm talking about!" she looked at the withered cat with an amused gaze "Hate to ruin your perspective Old Guy but I don't believe in those curses and the like" after a moment of silence she scratched the choker on her neck again " But let's say that you are right and karma will kick me in the ass someday, will not killing you make any difference?"

She stirred a slight commotion amongst the group, they began whispering and muttering something between themselves, just like they wanted to make sure they heard her correctly.

She held her paw in the air in a dismissive manner " Ok don't bother, I already know the answer" she sighed " Yes, I've never wanted to kill you, in fact I've planned to leave you here"

" You...you...w...will...le...le...leave us a...a...alone?" one of the female dragons stammered

" A shock right? I'm not that cruel as you may think"

Happy murmurs filled the cave, no one of them could believe what's happening.

" Ok then" she blurt out " I'll leave you here" with that she disappeared into the dark corridor

Silent screams of joy, loud sighs of relief and many other happy emotions were shared amongst the fragile group after the black dragoness left them. The cheery mood was interrupted by a black snout with green eyes emerging from the shadows.

" Did I say how long I want you stay here?"

"No" everyone in the group replied with a wavering tone.

" Let's see..." she scratched the choker once more " Today we have...tomorrow is...this war will end..." she looked at the group and smiled " Forever" with that she breathed a strong gust of wind at the ceiling.

It was so powerful that the corridor caved-in instantly. An avalanche of rocks blocked the cavern where the civilians were hiding. Some muffled terrified screams were the last thing she heard before the only way for them to leave this den was obstructed by a pile of rocks.

She patted one of the stones in admiration, this was the first time she kept a promise, they will remain in that cavern forever, even after their deaths which will come soon thanks to the lack of air they will still be there, well at least their bones will but for her it still counts. When the dust began to sting her eyes she turned around and made her way towards the exit.

" It's time to find me a nickname" she muttered to herself when a soft breeze of wind caressed her snout.

Once the mountain was the hiding place for all those who couldn't fight, a safe haven even in this difficult times, a sign that there is always hope, always a time for some normality even during a war. Now the caves weren't a beacon for all those seeking refuge, now they were graves, mass graves, where people were buried alive. Every single cave was collapsed, their entrances blocked by piles of massive rocks. Only dust hung in the air, a sign that the times have changed, her chest swelled with pride when she realized that is was her actions that turned the world upside down.

"No, no, no, no, no, no" she repeated irritated while withdrawing her bloody claws from one of the cheetah's chest. The broken corpse fell lifelessly to the ground, with a stream of blood flowing from its mouth as it hit the ground, it landed next to the body of a freshly killed cub.

She sighed in boredom " People be innovative, just look at them" she gesticulated with her paw at the line of bloody and broken corpses, there were plenty of them, females and children, both dragon and cheetah. " You really want to join them? I doubt it, so start thinking!" she exclaimed angrily and sighed tiredly before pointing blindly a claw on the trembling crowd of females and children who had troubles catching breath thanks to the choking fear.

"Next!" she yelled and rubbed her forehead, this whole thing got her a headache. After a while of silence she rolled her eyes " Do we every time have to go through this?" as no one from the group reacted to her commanding shout, she had to approach them herself. " You two, come here" she pointed her claw at one dragoness and her single child.

A pewter dragoness and an adolescent green dragon with small bladelike plates on his chin hesitatingly stepped out from the crowd.

She emitted a bored sigh " Ok this is the last time when I repeat the rules so pay attention." She pointed her claw at the female " Your job is to find me a nickname, something that I would like, something out of the ordinary, be innovative!" she looked at the dragoness with emotionless gaze " I'll punish you for every name I won't like, I'll break a bone here, make a cut there and so on and so on until you will be barely left alive, just then I will slaughter your brat. You will see how I rip him to shreds before you die, after all everybody needs some nice memories."

She emitted another bored sigh, clearly tired from repeating the same thing over and over again " If by any chance you will think of a nickname that I will like, I will stop torturing you and release your kid so he can spread the word. A fair deal right? You can take your time, there is no rush, but don't think for too long, my patience has its limits" her eyes sparkled with joy " Everything's clear. Great now let's begin" she began walking around the dragoness waiting for her answer.

" Vanquisher" the female muttered after a moment of silence.

She stopped and considered the answer " Nah, to common" she slashed her claws, creating a long deep cut on the dragonesses side, the female groaned in pain. The young dragon couldn't bare the sight, he covered himself with his wings.

She waved her paw around " Go on, go on" she urged the dragoness

Another moment of silence has passed as the female fought with pain " Bloodwing" the dragoness finally hissed through clenched teeth

" Bloodwing, Bloodwing..." she muttered while scratching the choker thoughtfully " Nah, it sounds like a bird name to me" with that she swung her tail and cut the dragonesses left paws making her fall to the ground with a painful scream.

" I want a nickname...a nickname that people will associate with me and only me, something special. Think" she wiped the blood from the blade like tip on her tail and started to circle the female once again.

The dragoness groaned in pain, using every free second to slow her rapid breathing and to prepare herself for another surge of an almost unbearable pain if the black dragoness won't like her answer.

"Doombringer" the female finally hissed

She stopped in her tracks and considered the answer, after a moment she began to nod her head approvingly " A good one, a really good one, but a little too empathic" with that she hit the female making her spit blood. Then she ordered some of her men to spread the dragonesses wing as far as possible and hold it still. She flapped her wings and raised into the air, after she reached the desired altitude she spun around and dived. Just when she was getting close to the ground she prepared to land however she didn't really focus on slowing down. Instead of aiming on solid ground she headed directly at the female's opened wing, the speed and her weight was too much for the wing. Some bones shattered completely after she landed on the it, while some others pierced the female's scales creating an open fracture, the wing was completely broken.

The pewter dragoness agonizing shriek echoed throughout the mountains, the shriek was soon replaced by horrible screams as the pain pulsed through her body. The moment she moved her wing some more bones snapped sending another surge of anguish through her, the intense pain squeezed tears from her eyes and soon she began to cry.

She was unmoved by the female's rapid breathing and weeping, she stepped from the wing and began to circle the dragoness like nothing ever happened. " When people see me they know that I'm their end. My name should say that I'm not only going to steal their lives,,," the column of light could be seen behind her, however her big form prevented it to illuminate the surroundings.

"... but also something else, something that gives them will to fight, a symbol of hope. I want to show them that they can't count on it when I'm around, I want to show them that I will even steal something like this from them."

When she noticed a shadow on the ground the female lifted her head and looked at the black dragoness in front of her with watery eyes. " Lightbane" she sobbed

She froze in place while her eyes shot wide open, soon she began to nod her head " I can't believe I will say this but we have a winner!" she exclaimed and pointed a claw at the young dragon " Kid you should be proud of your mother"

He ignored her, his mother took all of his concentration, he started to approach her, to hug her and somehow ease her suffering.

She blocked his path with her tail " No time for cuddling, you have a job to do. You will spread that name in every place you visit, I want people to know about it. I'm giving you two months, if you will be a good boy I'll let you live and I will even leave your mother alone. If after two months I won't hear my new nickname, then...well you know what's going to happen. As you see time is of the essence so of you go!"

The young dragon stared at his mother, he would most likely ignore her order if not for a single nod from the pewter dragoness. He sobbed and after a while turned around and started to fly away.

She stared at the disappearing shape of the young dragon in the distance " Lightbane" she huffed and swung her tail, not paying any attention to the sound of cracking bones behind her.

"Lighbane" she repeated the word in a full of awe voice and swung her tail again

" I like it" she stated with full satisfaction, completely ignoring the pewter female head rolling down from the elevation.

Cynder gasped and opened her eyes, another one of those strange dreams struck her, she was sweating and breathing rapidly, once again she had to calm herself down. She was laying on her right side on the soft bed, staring at the gloomy wall of her room ahead. It would be completely dark if not for the moon sending its light through the windows and the big glass door. She rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling while rubbing her forehead, the dancing moonlight on the ceiling helped her to calm down. She rolled onto her other side, to look at her gracious friend. The moment she looked at the glass doors, her eyes went wide open, there was a purple dragon standing on the balcony, his tail was swaying slowly as he observed the sleepy city.

" Spyro?" Cynder muttered to herself, his visit surprised her.

She rolled from the bed and began walking towards the door " Spyro? What are you doing here?" she asked but this time quite louder. He stood in the same place, it seemed he didn't hear her. She wanted to open the door but to her surprise they were locked, she knocked on the glass instead " Spyro?"

His tail stopped moving and after a while he slowly began to turn around, she gasped when his brown eyes looked at her, she jumped back when he pressed himself on the window, the blood flowing down from his deep wound on his chest started to cover the door.

She winced when she heard three knocks " Let me in!" he shouted in a raspy voice

Cynder began slowly taking some steps back while staring at the figure ahead " You are not real! You are not real!" she yelled back in fear

Another three knocks, this time however they seemed to be coming from inside her head, her paws bent under her at the sound. " Cynder, let me in!" he yelled again and began to scratch the window with his bloody claws.

" Get out!" she screamed while still moving backwards.

Three knocks again, they were so strong that she fell on the ground " Let me in!" he roared and started to chew the glass, his teeth began to shatter as he did so.

" You are not there!" she yelped in pain

Three knocks once again, these seemed to be pounding at her brain from inside her skull, just like something was inside her head and swung its hammer just to strike her brain, sending surges of pain through her skull, just like it was about to explode. " Let me in!" he roared again and jumped on the window to scratch the glass with his paws, just like a cat who really wants to get inside a house.

She pulled herself up and ran behind the bed, she dropped to the ground covering herself with her wings and placing her paws on her pounding head, she began to sway like a cradle while wincing from the agonizing pain.

" LEAVE ME ALONE!" Cynder roared at the top of her lungs.

There was silence, an addictive and most welcoming silence. She blinked her eyes, the pain has faded and the blood freezing sounds were gone. She uncovered herself and pressed herself against the side of the bed, taking a deep breath she began slowly to crane her neck upwards. Her heart pounded faster and faster when her eyes were just about to reach the top of the bed, and when finally they did she sighed in relief. There was nothing there, no scary looking dragon, no blood or scratches on the glass, only the calm silvery moon could be seen in the distance.

After a while of staring at the door she pulled herself on the bed and rolled on her back to look at the calm moonlight on the ceiling once again, it was so pleasant to look at that, it helped her to drift away into a blissful sleep. A strange sound has stirred her awake, it almost sounded like somebody was eating, not far away, the chewing sound came from ahead of her.

Cynder opened her eyes just to see the broken body of a purple dragon standing on her, her eyelids went wide open when she saw bits of black and magenta scales protruding from his blood covered mouth before they disappeared down his gullet. The dragon lowered his head and her eyes impulsively went after it. The moment her eyes went down she saw her belly completely torn open, some of her own guts stood out from the deep red hole and blood flown down from her torn belly, covering the white sheets in dark red hue.

She screamed and began to thrash when the dragon took another bite, tearing bits of her own flesh as a result. She kept shrieking and screaming but couldn't move, something was holding her paws. She looked in panic at her stretched forelegs, her paws were trapped, some thick chains were wrapped around them. She began to jerk and crane her neck just to break herself free, but no matter what she did she couldn't reach the chains. She looked at the dragon, he was staring at her with his brown eyes while blood dripped from his chin. She emitted one last terrified shriek when he opened his maw and with a growl reached for her throat.

Cynder gasped and her eyes snapped wide open, she was laying on the bed on her side staring at the bright wall ahead, the sun perfectly illuminated it with its light. The sun, that single thought forcedher to roll over on her other side and to look at the glass door. There was nothing there, Cynder quickly slid from the bed and made her way towards the door, she hesitatingly extended her paw and pressed the handle, the door opened without problems. With uncertain steps she stepped onto the balcony and looked around, she couldn't see any sign telling her that somebody was standing here.

Cynder rubbed her forehead " I'm officially going crazy" with that dire statement she left the balcony and closed the door.

She jumped when she heard three knocks, but this time they seemed to be coming from the door on the opposite side of the room.

" Cynder, let me in!" a familiar muffled shout came from behind the door

" Spyro?" she muttered to herself and without thinking ran towards the door. She opened them just to see a familiar snout in front of her.

" You won't believe what just happened!" Spyro blurt out with an excited tone " a guy just arrived in the City Hall, nothing special you will say I know, but if you hear the rest of the..." his voice trailed off and he furrowed a brow when he saw her craning her neck through the doorstep so she could turn her head from side to side as if she was looking for something "Ummm Cynder, is everything alright?" Spyro asked surprised

She looked at him and smiled implausibly " Yeah, I'll be right there, give me a sec" she hid inside her room and slammed the door shut.

Cynder leaned against them and sighed, that dream felt so real, just like the previous one. It left a strange sensation, like she was there personally and not walking in a dream world. She stretched her wing and winced, a surge of pain ran through it. Momentarily her chest began to ache, it was a dull pain but it was there, exactly in the place where the dragon from her dream slammed his tail. Pain was not the only thing she felt, the taste of rotten meat and dried blood invaded her mouth, Cynder instantly began to rub her tongue just to get rid of the taste somehow. She also felt tired, even if she woke up in the morning she felt like she hasn't slept a single hour.

" What is happening with me?" she asked herself with a glimmer of fear in her voice.