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One beat, two beats, three beats and blessed smoothness that allowed Rowan to relax as Amber glided forward long enough that her legs were no longer burning with pain. Her fingers clung to leather and felt numb with the cold air that was hitting against them. Even her ears were numb, the tips having lost sensation hours ago, and the only reason that her nose was warm was because she tucked herself down and around Oake. The fawn was sound asleep, barely moving as she used her body to keep him warm in the cold air as she had the entire flight. The few times he did wake up he was babbling with excitement, utterly fearless of the fact every time she looked down she felt as if she were going to pass out. She had never been higher than a tree, and the first time she had glanced down over an island that looked like a small speck she had known a new level of terror. The only thing that kept her holding on was the fact that Oake was tucked against her, his warm body and the soft scent of him kept her courage up.

They had been flying for three days now, off and on, having to rest often due to their escort. Five drakes accompanied them, each one decked in armor that was too large for them and bearing riders from Canith. The rest were back on the Spit and working with the dragonesses to get their children home where they belonged. The rebellion was a quiet one, Amber had seen to that. The females had been incensed at the slaughter, finding it all too easy to imagine what might happen if they decided to keep a hatchling to themselves instead of allowing him to go to war. Their agreement had been the easiest part of the rebellion, the hardest part had been keeping it quiet. There was no telling what the elves would do if they found out, no one wished to risk it, at least not yet. They didn't want to be stopped before they had even gotten started.

Heartwood was left in charge of the evacuation, despite his attempts to join Amber and Oake to Alaine, but there was no one else that could keep the young bucks in line. Two otterkin and three humans were on the dragons, their own guard against the Riders. Amber seemed so sure that they wouldn't harm her, but Rowan didn't feel the same way. Amber was a threat now, bearing eggs or not, she was something that could cave in their hold on the female dragons. The elves wouldn't know that word had already been spread, it would be worth her death to keep her silent. The young drakes didn't even realize how serious this was, they had only been excited for a chance to see battle, bragging to one another that they would fight against a larger slower adult. It would have been amusing if Rowan hadn't felt sick to her stomach. There had been enough bloodshed.

"Hold on!" Amber's bugle made the satyr lift her head just in time to see the gold tinged wings fold to either side.

"Oh gods," Rowan hissed and hunched herself down as far as she could against the smooth hide along the neck.

The leather harness that the dragoness wore did give her some measure of safety, she even had a harness of her own to hook into the straps so that she couldn't fall off on accident, but she didn't trust it. This high up the only thing she trusted was her own grip as she heard similar yelps of shock coming from the other dragons as they dove. None of the riders wanted to experience a dive, but it seemed to be the only way the dragons left the air. Or perhaps they simply enjoyed the race as they fell from the sky at high speeds towards a point below where they could land. Whatever the reason, Rowan was left clutching the dragoness for all that she was worth, hoping the leather wouldn't give, hoping she wouldn't feel the jarring impact of an enemy from above or lose her hold on her fawn. What had ever inspired her on this trip?

The wings flared open at the last moment, beating rapidly as Amber backwinged onto a patch of ground that was barely large enough for all six dragons at once. Their bodies crammed together one by one as the young drakes landed with their pupils pinning with excitement and their armor rattling about. Rowan carefully opened her eyes and sat up, feeling Oake wriggling back and forth against her as he woke up. His ears were pricked up in the air as he turned his head about, taking it all with large eager eyes as if he did this every day of his life. Nothing phased him, his world had been disrupted so many times already since his birth, why would a simple rough landing stir him? Rowan squeezed him gently against her chest, a smile briefly crossing her lips as she rubbed her chin between his horns.

"We're going to rest here, we're less than half a day away." Amber turned her head about, the large muzzle angling until she nearly touched the satyr. "We want to arrive as fresh as we can. Chartres said he saw smoke in the distance, so they might already be fighting."

"So we're going into a war zone?" The thought made Rowan's stomach roil, but Oake giggled and wriggled from her, straining in his straps to wrap his small arms around Amber's muzzle.

"To the edge of it." Amber amended and turned her head in the direction of the Isle. "They are fighting for the mines, they'll be under ground. My hope is I can send one of the drakes in to get Alaine, once he's extracted we can pull back. If he sees you he'll abandon the battle and we can work out what we do next from there."

"Or he'll try and fight both sides for himself." Rowan almost whispered the fear, her hand cupping along her fawn's belly to keep him from undoing his riding straps. "He might take his vengeance on them."

"We won't allow it." Amber gave her head a short shake. "I won't allow it, he needs to be free of this and he won't risk Oake." The dragoness' eyes softened as she looked at the fawn who was entertaining himself by trying to catch her tongue every time it came into view. "And once we're on the move I can cover his back. There's not a drake alive that would harm a dragoness."

"They've never been commanded to." One of the otterkin spoke up from his dragon. "Don't discount what they will do or won't do. You've all been treated well so far."

"True, but it's a risk I'm willing to take. If they try to turn on us I am still faster than any drake, I will flee." Amber turned her head away, shaking her wings slightly. "For now, let us rest, we can try and get some sleep and come in once morning breaks."

I hope she's right. Rowan sighed as the dragons began to shift and move so that they could lie down. I hope that I'm not taking Oake into more danger than we can handle. I hope that Alaine can hold out until morning. So many hopes.. If only the gods are listening.

~ ~ * ~ ~

"Push forward!" Alaine bugled the words out, ignoring the sting of smoke and acid that came with each breath. His nostrils were raw, bleeding in places from inhaling it, but the winds that the mages were calling up kept the air fresh.

He launched forward again, the armored helmet ringing as stones fell down from the wall as his claws scrabbled against the opening and wedged the rocks open further. Other drakes pushed with him, Balefire was somewhere down the line, but Thronnos was crammed side by side, trying to use their bulk to force the rock to part despite the Slokaken's attempts to keep the rock wall up. He had never felt anything like it, he had spent his life in mines just like this, he knew how rock should act, but now the rock was straining against them and trying to knit together. Every time one of them managed to open it wider, acrid smoke billowed out and stung their eyes and noses in a vain attempt to keep them back. Several of the younger drakes had stepped back, rubbing their eyes and muzzles and coughing out blood from burnt throats. Alaine , Thronnos, Baelfire and a handful of others continued on step by painful step.

His claws sank between the rocks and he threw his weight forward, his shoulder wedged until he felt the cracks in the rock widening. His hind legs pushed down hard as he let out a wordless scream of rage and frustration as powdered stone fell along his face and down his back. Another lunge was helped as Thronnos slammed against him, nearly pinning him against the rock before there was a great crack and it fell inwards with a rush of magic laden smoke that made Alaine stumble back, coughing and choking as it poured down his already raw throat. He hobbled backwards, shaking his head roughly back and forth to clear his vision of tears as the mages stepped in to clear the worst of it. His dark red scales were streaked with black soot and white powder, his tongue dry and thick feeling in his mouth and his legs were trembling from exhaustion.

"They'll take a bit to get through." Thronnos sounded weary as the large dragon settled down on his haunches with a groan. "I think that might have been the last push."

Alaine lowered his muzzle to peel the helmet off his head, tired of the confining heat, and began to rub his nose before sneezing. A splatter of dark blood hit the rocks before he licked his muzzle clean and watched as the mages went to work. What had been neat entrances were now gaping wounds in the mines as they dug inwards, but they weren't digging for the entrances to where the enemy had burrowed themselves. They were digging for the air tunnels that should be running right near them, the narrow shafts that were designed to bring fresh air and keep the place from growing sour, those would still be open. He had vague memories of always enjoying the times he was forced to clear out the air shafts in his youth, it had been the closest he had ever come to the sun and air, and now they were the key to victory.

They weren't designed to be defended or protected, there were no magical traps set into them or booby traps ready to be sprung. Everyone felt that the enemy had gone down deeper in the mines to a defensible place that they could wait out a siege in. Unlike a city, there were no walls that the dragons could fly over, there could even be an ocean exit somewhere in the midst of it to allow them to escape. Escape wasn't an option, he wasn't going to see them fleeing this place only to attempt to return, Alaine was adamant on that front. Every new chamber they took brought them closer to victory, and this one was the prize. The mages had said that there was a shield built into the rock itself to surround the next chamber, that was where they were going to try and make a stand.

"We should call up the others." Alaine spoke thickly, trying not to cough as every swallow felt as if he were swallowing around crushed glass. "Get prepared."

"Yes, and we should get the drakes out of here to change positions. You're bleeding too heavily, we need to have you patched up before you can fight." Thronnos rubbed his own bleeding muzzle. "Slithering snakes, they won't even attack us properly. I'm going to find Minos, head up to the cave opening and I'll join you. A few barrels of water will clear the taste of gas from my throat."

They had been trying to get past the walls for what felt like days, and the drakes that helped were all on edge. No elves were down here, not until one of them bellowed an all clear that brought them running form the safe area. They had to use brute force on the weakened rock and there were too many falling stones to risk a Rider. Only Alaine wasn't bothered by the lack of having an elf nearby, it felt more natural to have his kind surrounding him and only his kind. The first wall had been brought down by the mages alone, but they were rapidly faltering. The gems that they used to focus and increase their power was rapidly failing, even the ones that were clearing the noxious gas and smoke held blackening precious stones. He had been told that they would soon be used up, they had to break through to force a surrender soon. That's what he had been told by Thronnos time and time again, and each time he felt more annoyed by it.

It's not as if I can bring down a wall any faster. He limped up a ramp and managed a slight growl as a few of the mages moved too slowly for his liking.

His body was aching as he got to the top of the ramp and into relatively fresh air, the broad cavern was crowded with drakes, all pushed together as they were in various states of being armored or being patched up. Some showed signs of laboring to bring down the walls, others were injured enough that they were obviously unable to be moved. He crinkled his lips back at the musk of dragons on the air, and burnt scales. He ignored most of them on his way towards a small cavern to one side, his head lifted up as he noticed a rather thick looking white drake positioned outside of it with a wary look on his long features. Alaine limped over slowly, stopping only to snatch a mouthful of water to clean his senses out of the taste of the foul smoke. He picked the barrel up carefully with one paw, his claws scoring it before he continued on three legs to the spot that seemed mostly deserted in the large cavern.

"I would advise against it." The white gave him a look and shifted on his haunches. "He nearly took my leg off when I tried to look in on him."

"He won't hurt me." Alaine lifted his head up and glanced into the small cubby, trying to not recoil at the harsh scent of decaying flesh and filth that wafted from it. "Stand aside."

"Sir." The drake gave a slight movement with a forepaw, almost an elven salute before he moved aside, gratefully retreating to where his Rider was repairing armor.

On the second day of battle they had forced the elves deeper into the mine, but something, someone, had been left behind. The dragon hadn't moved from the cave he'd stuffed himself in since the siege had moved on, refusing to budge except for striking out when someone came too close to him. Alaine arched his neck and peered at the form laying on his side, the narrow emaciated ribs rose and fell slowly, as if even breathing cost too much effort to be born. The drake's scales were black, not a healthy glossy black, but a dead dull color that he had once boasted himself. They were crumbling around the edges, mashed together in spots so that large callouses had formed where the buckles of the harness and muzzle had laid over him. His head was stretched out with the jaws opened as he sucked in each breath slowly, struggling to swallow it down before hissing it out again.

Alaine felt a familiar roll of fury in his chest as he settled onto his haunches and carefully placed the barrel of water against the wall. The elves had offered to tend the former captive, but the beast went wild at the sight of one, rising from near death to try and tear them apart. He didn't blame his fellow slave, he would have felt the same, he himself had set a guard on the cavelet, a dragon that was ordered to bear no rider so that the former captive could feel secure. He hadn't had time to do more than that, but now he looked over the broken form with a sick wave of familiarity. The curve of the stomach that should have been just a slight dip beneath the barreled chest was emaciated to the point that he could see the hollow of the ribs above them. The joints were swollen with not enough meat on them to possibly support any movement.

"I have brought you water." Alaine tried softly, averting his eyes with instinctive shame from the twisted wings. Like his own wings they had been broken decades ago and were atrophied and were cast against the poor fellow's back. "We will kill them all soon."

The drake rasped in a breath and turned his head, the eye opened slowly to show a startlingly silver eye rimmed with blue around the pupil. The creature lifted his head up on his too thin neck and sucked in another breath, revealing a wound right along his chest. It was older, festering and untreated, the source of the foul smell on the air that made Alaine want to recoil. He held his place as the drake reached out and dragged the barrel to himself, shoving his muzzle into it to gulp down the water. As his head was turned Alaine saw the other side of his face, a mask of torn and scarred skin where his other eye had once been. That alone identified him.

"They called you Mock." Alaine spoke slowly as the drake drained the barrel of water, his good eye rolled up to glare at him. "I remember you the night they moved us, you had so many handlers you could barely move."

The former slave bared his teeth slightly, but seemed to find the effort too much as he lifted his head and gave Alaine a cold look. "And now you are their pet instead of slave." The voice was rasping and harsh. "How Aratha must weep at the sight of you, Black. Do your master's feed you choice meat and call you sweet names?"

Alaine flinched, the barb hitting home as he drew himself back to see Mock rolling onto his chest, his forelegs splayed open wide as he lifted his head up. He remembered the drake, the handlers had spoken of him as a treacherous beast that was too damned mean to die. He had become renowned for attacking at random, playing the willing slave until someone slipped up and he could strike. Now the single rage filled eye was focused on him as Alaine fought the urge to defend his actions. How could he defend them?

"I am Alaine. That is who I have always been." He growled out low in his throat. "I will do whatever I must to claim my home and kill those that broke me."

"I am Mock." The creature snapped his jaws forward, cracking his teeth together. "I have no need of another name. Go back to your masters, Black, go back and have them strap you in as you labor for them. Perhaps you'll get a tasty bit of meat or a pat on the head."

The speech seemed to exhaust him as Mock's head swayed back and forth, his chest heaving with each breath. The jaws were spread open wide to show the pale white-pink tongue, not the healthy red that it should have been. It was repulsive to the drake seeing one of his kind in this state, he had never been this badly off. He had been abused and thin, yes, but this creature was barely a wisp of what he should have been.

"I have no masters." Alaine growled and curled back his lips. "I will use the elves until I have met my ends and be done with them. I have no use for the creatures."

Like singing in the darkness, empty words. He felt a shudder run over him as Mock continued to regard him, the single eye piercing him.

"I am honest, Black." Mock hissed out and slowly dropped his muzzle down, the wound on his chest weeping puss as the pressure broke the scab. But it was the use of his slave-name that made Alaine cringe. "I will die here, but I am free. More free than you who managed to escape this place."

"And that will make Aratha open her wings to you?" Alaine snapped out, pushing to all fours with a low snarl. "That you starve and die, while I free the rest who are captured?! Truly you are noble!"

"Aratha's wings are shut to us." The drake's eye sagged shut. "They always have been, if you think otherwise you have finally succumbed to madness. I only want the end, whatever it may be."

Alaine's lips curled back, a tremor of rage ran down his spine as he turned away with his tail lashing back and forth, nearly crashing against the white drake who hesitantly went to take up his post. How dare that creature judge him? How dare he speak of things he did not understand? Every step made the low growl rise up in his throat, a steady beat that made a few turn to look at him as he stalked back towards the broken walls. He would free the others and retake this Isle, he would claim it for himself and his mate, he would be a free dragon. He was a free dragon!

~ ~ * ~ ~

"BRING UP THE THIRD GUARD! AND THE SECOND!" The roared words echoed down to Alaine as he gave himself a shake, feeling the armor rattling against his wounds and scratching them. "MAGES TO THE SECOND LINE!"

The thin barrier that held them from the last chamber was ready to give, they ranged through the mines at six points that would allow them to tear through and end this battle. Alaine quivered with the need to take the lead, but the mages would bring down the final barrier that would allow them to take down the elves on the other side. It had taken them nearly a full day to get prepared, but it was finally coming to an end. Alaine shifted on his paws, tearing his claws against the stone as he felt the drakes pressed in against him, each one ready to attack. Thronnos had warned them all of the dangers ahead of them, that they would be holding back their mages, they would have reserves that they didn't boast, that they would be fighting for their existence and would be cornered. The last part had made Alaine feel a spike of anticipation. Let them be cornered, he would be more than happy to have them cornered in front of him.

His unease from talking with Mock remained. It wasn't simply being confronted with the drake's accusations, it was seeing his past being put in living tattered flesh. The creature had only known this place, only known the darkness of a life as a slave. He could recall those days after his escape, he could recall knowing nothing but rage and fury. He had believed his world was only made of that fury, that he had no room for anything except vengeance and the pain of his past. Now, he saw Mock as what he had been, because he had changed. Somewhere along the way, he had softened, for the heart cannot hold anger alone. It cannot be scooped out and distilled with any single emotion so there was room for nothing else. He had grown the moment he had met Rowan, he had adored with the first sight of Oake's chubby body, he had loved with Amber's sweetness.

I am not an instrument of vengeance. He shifted slightly as the mages began to set their spell in motion.I am not simply the battered creature that this place raised. I survived in this place of blood and pain, but I was made alive by Rowan, Oake, Amber, Rouro... I do not have to die here, I have reason to live.

As he felt the battle fury welling in his breast, something else brushed over him, a warm tender sensation that relaxed his muscles. It was a silent feeling of approval, a golden edged taste of a being so much greater than himself. Ever since he had escaped he had been focused on vengeance at any cost, but now the cost was too dear. His unborn eggs, his little fawn, Amber... He felt the warmth fill him, flooding over his soul and heart like the warmest sun. Aratha had not turned her face from him because he could not fly, she had turned from the darkness of his soul. A darkness that others had found and cast out with their friendship and warmth. A darkness that did not have to stain the days of his life if he did not wish to carry it.

When the walls went it was with a crack of sound and an eruption of light from the other side, a blasting pressure that hit him on the armored chest as he screeched out his war cry. He threw himself towards the opening, his heart rising in his chest. As he crashed into the first blast of magic he rose up onto his haunches, his wings flaring open wide with a stab of pain, he would win this day and live. He was a son of Aratha.

~ ~ * ~ ~

The smoke of the final battle cleared behind Thronnos as he walked up the passage ways and to the bright blue sky above. He lifted his head up and snuffed the air, tasting the scent of burning meat and blood on the air as he made his way towards the cave entrance. His body ached, but it was a pleasant ache that made him lid his eyes and savor the knowledge that they had been victorious. Dragons had died, several of them, but they had done so with honor. Their home was now their own again, this place that he had known in his youth would be restored to a glorious knew land. The Riders would reclaim the old aeries, they would once again bring females here to nest and brood their eggs. They would build grand cities and buildings that were designed with a dragon in mind. This Isle was their own now, a place where the Riders could be secure as they routed out the Slokaken and drove them back to their own lands.

Alaine had fought with surprising clarity at the final battle, he hadn't blindly struck forward without them, but he had held the line with the drakes beside him. The few times that there were pauses in the battle he had seen the drake barking out orders and trying to help make a hole for their mages to get through. He had felt a certain amount of pride in the young drake, seeing him reach the potential that he should have had from the start. He was learning from his time with the dragons and their Riders, being shown that there was more to life than simple revenge. He had only had to see that they could fight together to come around entirely. Thronnos rumbled to himself and stretched his cramped wings out above his head. Once the satyr was big enough to be a Rider Alaine would be theirs. He would make an intelligent and capable leader in their army, he simply had to be retrained on how to think and act.

"Let me down..." Minos shifted in the saddle as the dark drake stepped into the sunlight and lifted his head. "I think I'm bruised all over."

"You fought well." Thronnos rumbled in approval as he reached up with one forepaw and helped his Rider down. "It was a clean battle."

"We could have done better without so many losses." The elf dropped down and looked over the Isle with a proprietary eye. "We'll be weeks cleaning out the mines and getting them into working order, but it was all worth it."

"Aye, indeed it was." Thronnos began to rumble low in his throat as he settled onto his stomach and began to stretch out. Drakes were coming out of the mine, some injured enough that they required support. "My home is now free of the invaders."

"Our home, old friend." Minos reached out to slap his forepaw lightly. "Take your pick, Thronnos, any place you wish our home. It can be at the highest peak, I'll see it built for us. You deserve it!"

"Rrrmm... yes, I think I might remember where my old aerie is, it faced the ocean. It always smelled of salt water." Thronnos lidded his eyes and took in a deep breath, almost imagining what it would be like to see it again. Would it have been left alone? Or had the Slokaken uprooted it for their buildings.

He looked over the place, it had changed since he had last seen it. Buildings had been put together, but the style was all wrong. They were too blocky and awkward looking, hastily patched up instead of gracefully built. It made the landscape look ugly and strange, but that could be fixed soon enough. He would take it upon himself to make notations on what needed changed. A small town could be built, but not too large, all it needed to hold were servants since the Riders would live with their dragons. They would have aeries that combined the best of both worlds, wide open spaces along with elegant houses that would offer some comfort. He would also have to talk to some of the elven females about a sort of birthing building that would allow for them to be tended by the young drakes.

Thronnos was losing himself in his exhausted contemplation when he noticed a drake that was awkwardly trotting towards the opening of the cave. It was a washed out red with white undertones that was wearing horribly patched together armor. It was all too large, the helmet was skewed to one side and kept moving to cover the youngsters eyes. He was fresh scaled and clean looking, even the armor of his chest was polished up, though it didn't match the helmet at all. He passed other dragons and stood out like a sore thumb, every fighting drake was covered in soot or blood or dust or all three. He was too small, far smaller than the fighting drakes, he had no rider. Alarm made Thronnos heave up to his feet, his eyes narrowing down before stepping forward to place himself between the too young dragon and the cave entrance.

"Name and rider?" He rumbled out, Minos came beside him and he felt his Rider's hand rest lightly on his foreleg.

"Ahh.. S-Sir.." The youngster's eyes flashed open in a bit of panic as he pulled back. "I was just going to che-"

"Name and Rider!" Thronnos snapped out, his tail tip lashing behind him in annoyance. He had made his orders clear, all drakes were to stay on the Spit unless summoned. He had emptied the grounds of the nearly ready dragons, and this upstart had managed to slip out.

"Coral, s-sir. I have no Rider!" The youngster was almost trembling as Minos let out a short bark of laughter from beneath the dragons.

"Well, you must admit he's eager, Thronnos. We can put him on clean up to teach him a lesson." His Rider's voice remained amused. "Maybe if he spends the day pushing rocks about he'll think better about coming into battle like this."

"Yes... sir." The youngster lowered his head slightly, looking abashed. Thronnos stifled a sigh, they really had to teach them discipline when they were younger.

"Go and report to Nocturn, he'll set you on clearing some of the safe passages." Thronnos flicked his wing in dismissal. He was too tired to worry about egg wet hatchlings, he wanted to see if his parents aerie was still there, he wanted to soar over his home again.

We've won... He lifted his head and took in a deep breath. After so many long years, they had won and he was home. He turned his head to gaze fondly at Minos. Our home.