9- Aftermath
#14 of The Legend of Rift Book III: Downfall
"SHE PLAYED US LIKE A FIDDLE!" Silvus roared in anger, slamming his paw to the ground. He had seen plenty of death in his life, but the absolute destruction of the Messengers and Guardians was too much to hold in.
Sithris was tending to Kara's wounds, trembling uncontrollably from the events. He looked at the white dragoness and whimpered. "We can't lose him again..."
The silver drake clenched his eyes shut. Rift... Don't give up. We'll get you back when we can fight. He looked around at his surroundings. A vibrant and lush valley of green, sparkling blue rivers running through it. The Valley of Avalar.
Neala lay curled up, sniffling to herself on the riverbank. "Uncle Zap... Please come back. I miss you." Kara pushed herself away from Sithris and tended to her heartbroken daughter.
The electric dragon moved over to Silvus. Looking at the sky, he took a deep breath and sighed. "I'm ready, let's go get Rift."
"We can't Sithy. We go back in there, and we're dead. We need to recover and build a rebellion." Silvus really wanted to go back, his cousin would no doubt be the Queen's only prisoner.
Sithris growled and looked at Silvus. "We can't just abandon him! He's been through enough. Why don't we just get him out?"
Silvus snarled and snapped back. "And get ourselves killed? You have a family to live for!" He looked at the ground. "And I will have one too. Now isn't the time to be like Rift and just go in and blow everything up, we need a plan. Play to our strengths."
The black drake hung his head. "I'm sorry, I just can't let him die on me again. That dragoness wants him for something..."
"Agreed." Silvus nodded. "Our best bet is Shimmering Shores. You three need some rest. I need to talk with Rose." The Light messenger slowly created a portal, motioning the dragons to pass through.
"Rose? Where are you? I need gems!" Silvus groaned as he realised that last portal burnt though the last of his energy. His companions looked around in awe at the large hallways.
A white and black dragoness ran through the door in a panic, gems clutched in her arms. "What is happening Silvus? So many Guardian Orbs went out!" She quickly smashed the crystals and all the dragons recovered.
Silvus shivered and pulled his sister into a hug, tears starting to fall. "They're dead, Shara killed them all. I don't know what's of Rift, but everyone else is gone."
Rose sighed and rubbed her brother's back. "It's alright Silvus, we'll just get Zapras to bring..." Her eyes grew wide as she noticed Neala, remembering that she was supposed to be with the life dragon. Her breathing quickened, her heart raced. "S-Silvus... Where's Zapras?" She looked into her brother's eyes pleadingly.
"I'm sorry Rose..."
Her heart shattered. She stuffed her head into Silvus' neck and screamed. Her mate was gone, lost to the Mad Queen. "No! He can't be gone. This isn't funny. We just became mates. He can't be dead!" She cried out her pain, the entire island victim to her screams.
Sithris, Kara, and Neala hung their heads in defeat. Zapras was the reason for the last eight years of calm. He had resurrected Kara and Rift, watching Neala when the adults were out. They didn't lose a friend, they had lost family.
Rose finally pulled herself away from Silvus and snarled. "She's dead. I'm going to pluck every scale from her body and rip out her horns and shove them up her-"
"YOU WILL NOT!" Silvus yelled. "You are the Guardian of Light. You are bound to this island and the future of the Guardians depend on you. You die, and all of dragonkind will follow." He pulled his sister into a hug. "I know he meant the world to you sis, but the best way to avenge him is to live on."
Sithris walked over. "We don't want them to find this place. I suggest somewhere we can defend. And big enough that we can house any dragons that find their way out of Warfang." He grinned as Kara smiled. "I'm thinking Dragon's Claw. It was completed last week, and is ready for use."
The silver drake nodded. "That's perfect. We'll get some rest for tonight, then head to Dragon's Claw." He put his wing over Rose. "We'll take Shara down sis, we just need to play it smart."
The bright moonlight made the orange fire drake groan, his blue eyes slowly opening. He couldn't feel his limbs. The dragon look at his surroundings. All around him was stone. The dungeon? What happened?
The door opened and the fire drake gulped as he saw the one that entered. Carmine popped his neck and grinned.
"I've been waiting a very long time for this."
Shara smiled as the last of the bodies were dragged away. It would take some time to replace the blood stained carpet, but she didn't mind. She ruled the city, and no one could stand up to her.
The front door opened and a Cheetah ran up to her throne. "Your highness, when my village accepted your union with the Panthers, we agreed on peace. The Guardians have been our allies and you murdered them!"
The Queen smirked as the leader of the Cheetahs told her off. "Now now Hunter, it was time for change. They killed my parents, I executed the lot of them. You Cheetahs are still allied with the dragons, just now MY dragons."
"Absolutely not Queen Shara!" Hunter stomped his foot. "The Cheetahs will not stand for the atrocities you've committed. From this day on, we will no longer be your ally."
The turquoise dragoness chuckled softly and waved a paw. "Oh Hunter, how silly of you to think you had a choice." Two Panthers stepped behind Hunter and grabbed him. "As far as your village knows, this never happened, only that their Chief is no longer there. You are now my prisoner. Men, take him away."
OOF!
The fire drake landed face first into a wall, his orange scales scarred and dirty. Carmine was flinging the younger dragon around in pleasure. The sedative that had originally knocked out the orange dragon kept him parylized from the neck down.
"Nine years ago you took over as Fire Guardian, my birthright!" The red dragon slammed his paw into Rift's face.
"You scarred my eye!" Carmine roared, swinging his tail spade perfectly to the Fire Guardian's eye, replicating his own scar. Rift roared in pain, blood seeping from the wound.
"And then a year later, you exile me and shattered my horns!" The large drake slowly calmed down and grinned. He picked up the younger drake by the jaw. "Shattered my horns..." He began slamming Rift's head against the wall, grinning as the fire drake screamed in pain, small fractures forming on his silver horns.
"Don't worry scum, unlike your cousin, you can keep enough of your horns to remember your place." With a final laugh, he connected the orange drake to the stone wall for the final time. Two horns shattered into tiny pieces, leaving jagged stumps as a stunned Rift fell limp to the ground, staring at the fragments that once completed his identity.
"I think I'm done here." Carmine snarled, making his way out the door. He paused a moment and laughed. "Here's a little present for being such a cooperative whelp." A yellow figure was dropped before the large drake locked the door.
Rift stared in a mixture of shock and horror. Lying dead in front of him, was his friend, the very drake that once brought he and Kara back to life. Zapras.