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A month had quickly passed, too fast for Tyrand to recollect. He had spent nearly all of his time with Daeis, his new beloved mate. He hated to admit it, but he knew that she had changed him. He never knew why she came to him or why she stayed. Neither of them talked about their past, and Tyrand would rather keep it that way. Daeis simply returned his love and admiration, proving that--perhaps--destiny did give out happy endings.

But Tyrand disagreed.

He looked into the sky, seeing a storm gathering in the North. Dark clouds hovered over his territory in the distance, threatening and menacing. The wind began to pick up and it was soon gusting, buffeting him with the storm's intimidating malevolence as the darkness surged toward them. Daeis stood at his side, leaning against him.

This is more than just a storm. Tyrand felt something inside of him. It was an intense anxiety he had never felt before and it was gnawing at his heart. He felt panicked. He felt scared. Whatever was coming, it was dangerous.

"Daeis." He gulped and repressed his fears. He was too strong to be fearful.

"Hmm?"

"I want you to leave. Hide yourself somewhere away from the storm."

"Why not in your cave? It's plenty big enough..." she said, shivering next to him. She could feel it, too: the powerful, vindictive presence that towered above them. It was coming too fast.

"You know why. Please," he insisted, looking at her with vivid distress. "Do it for me."

No comment, no retort, no nothing. She simply nudged him with a tender touch and left.

Tyrand braced himself as the gusts tried to beat him back. He stood bold and proud. If he would die here, then he would spit on the Gods when he met them and make them give his life back. He was going to live for Daeis; he would stop at nothing to survive.

---

Reesa saw the storm clouds ahead and the rain pouring beneath them, shading the land beneath in a misty and sinister haze. Lightning struck the earth powerfully, cracking and thundering shortly afterward. She felt as if she were flying into death itself. Despite that she was fearless. She felt that nothing could stop her, not even a storm as strong as this. Arriving at the back of the storm, the rain poured down onto her scales. She dropped down from the sky and flew just above the trees at blurred speeds. She didn't want to tempt fate just yet.

Drops of rain splattered against Reesa. The gusting wind carried her forward, quickening her careless flight into the belly of the beast. When she came into view of Tyrand's den, her heart lit aflame. She saw him there, waiting. Every fiber in her being screamed her bloodlust. She roared ferociously, her voice resounding like thunder. She met him in front of the Great Tree that towered over them, landing heavily on the ground.

Reesa stared at him with hatred, all of her malicious emotions seeping from her. Tyrand stood there, proud and noble. He didn't expose an ounce of emotion. Reesa walked around him aggressively, circling him. The ground was wet, muddy, and slick beneath her paws, as the rain continued to pour down in sheets of showering droplets. Finally, Reesa stopped in front of him, hunched and ready to pounce. Water dripped off of her crimson-scaled body while rain continued to splatter her.

"You know you're about to die, yet you stand there so self-righteously!" she growled. "I am going to tear every bit of your dignity apart just as you did to me."

"I know I cannot apologize for what I did." Tyrand bared his teeth viciously and met her stance with his own. "So if this is what it has come down to, then I will kill you, Reesa."

Reesa's roar was drowned by the thunder. She lunged forward with the flash of lightning and struck Tyrand before he could react to defend himself. Her sharp claws rendered his flank as he lurched to the side. Blood sprayed from where she gouged him. Tyrand growled and leaped at her as she came to a stop. Reesa ground her claws into the muddy earth and propelled herself away from the attack, barely dodging it. Tyrand jumped too far forward and lost his balance as he slipped on the ground. Reesa immediately took advantage of his instability and pounced on him, shoving him into the wet soil. He rolled with the dragoness attacking him. He put his hind-legs between him and her and kicked with all of his strength, sending her flying off to the side.

Reesa hit the ground hard and rolled with the momentum, quickly coming to her feet again. She roared, feeling her blood boiling with rage. She had successfully landed the first strike. Tyrand winced as he stood up. Then, he suddenly attacked her, charging the dragoness with unimaginable speed. His claws tore ruts in the ground as he sped forward, closing the distance between them in less than a second.

Reesa swayed to the side but was caught by his claws. They dug into her shoulder, hitting the bone as he dragged her down. She howled with pain and fell. Tyrand stood over her and pushed her down. Reesa quickly slashed at his exposed neck. He blocked the attack, but was unexpectedly struck by her rear-leg. She scored a hit on his underbelly, causing him to cringe in pain. She then kicked out one of his legs and swept another, causing him to nearly fall on her. Reesa was quick and moved on top of the male twice her size as he fell.

Tyrand growled savagely and flung his forearm into her head. He caught her off-guard and dazed her with a strong, blunt attack. Reesa felt dizzy as her brain rattled inside her skull. She blinked it away but was tackled by Tyrand before she could respond. He sank his teeth into her neck and forced her down. She cried out, feeling her consciousness slip for a split-second. Her body froze and fear filled her mind. She could feel his teeth slicing through her flesh. All he had to do now was rip her apart.

But Reesa couldn't let that happen.

Just as Tyrand went to pin her down, Reesa swiftly tore her own neck away from his teeth and kicked him off, using every bit of her strength just to move him away from her. Warm blood seeped from her wounds, dripping down to her white underbelly, staining it with crimson. If Reesa could feel the pain, she was sure that it would have incapacitated her.

But pain was just something that would get in the way of her resolution. Reesa surged forward, driven by sheer determination and instinct. She landed several blows on Tyrand, cutting his hide along his neck, shoulders, and flanks. Before he could retaliate, she pushed off of him and flew into the air. Tyrand roared and took off after her. She flew high into the black sky, daring the Gods to strike her down as she passed through the menacing clouds. She felt the static of energy coursing through her body. Her boldness was on the verge of insanity as she dared to go even higher. When she reached the pinnacle of her defiance, she stopped, flipped around, and dove like an arrow back down to Tyrand, piercing through the howling wind and rain.

Tyrand had lost sight of her when she went through the clouds. She suddenly shot down from the darkness like lightning with an earsplitting roar. By the time he saw her, he was far too late. They collided with incredible speed that would have broken any normal bones. Reesa sank her teeth deep into his neck and her claws into his body. The collision caused him to black out for a second, giving her a significant advantage as she disabled him. Blood sprayed and fell from his body like the rain. He cried out with a roar of defeat, hurling toward the earth faster and faster.

Reesa saw the ground coming up to meet them and released. If he could save himself, then she would let him. She wanted him to suffer just as she did. Tyrand did manage to save himself; he turned and spread out his wings, catching the wind before nearly falling to his death. That was more of a chance than he gave Koru. Reesa landed where he was struggling to stand.

Then, she saw Tyrand's bronze-scaled brother casually walking up to them. He stopped at an earshot away, watching... waiting.

Reesa stood over Tyrand, mighty and proud, ignoring Neekay for the moment. They were both covered in grime and blood, their red hides soiled in the fight.

"This is where you die, you disgusting beast." She pushed him over as he fought to stand and then put her claws to his neck. "Do you have any last words?" Neekay was still, not moving an inch to help his brother.

Tyrand closed his eyes and accepted his fate. A small tear fell down his cheek. "I'm sorry..."

The sudden apology caught Reesa off-guard; her eyes widened with disbelief. Did he apologize to her or was it something else? She shook her head and refocused herself. A white blur suddenly flew from her flank and struck her side, sending her flailing. Reesa yelped and rolled, quickly regaining her balance. Her neck had been clawed close to a vital spot, barely missing its mark. In front of her was a white-scaled dragoness covered in red markings, the likes of which she had never seen.

"Get away from him!" she screamed.

She charged Reesa, but she was much slower than the red dragoness. Reesa lurched to the side, dodging the other female's attack, and then pounced on her, bringing her down with ease. Tyrand groaned and mumbled something, still struggling to stand.

"No..." he weakly called out. "No!" He was slowly regaining his strength, being urged to stand by sheer willpower.

Reesa looked into the dragoness' crimson eyes and saw the fire in them. It was a blaze so potent that it could hardly be contained, and it struck a fearful chord in Reesa's heart. She suddenly sensed her own impending death and panicked. With a well-aimed jab, she penetrated the base of the dragoness' head, cutting through her jugular vein. Blood poured from her neck as she cried out in pain. Reesa backed off, mortified with the sin she committed. The dragoness went limp, dead.

"NO!" Tyrand roared at the top of his lungs. Reesa stood there, staring at her crime as a pool of blood formed around the dragoness, a blank expression across her face. Tyrand stood up and bared his bloody teeth angrily. Reesa watched him, surprised at his sudden, final drive. He was much slower than before, but he was determined--his eyes were as bright as a red flame, almost matching the dragoness' she just killed. Reesa sluggishly turned to defend herself as he charged. Time itself seemed to slow down as the distance between them decreased. Everything was just so slow...

"Reesa!" a familiar voice called.

Reesa looked and saw Koru landing heavily behind her, running up to her. In the moment of hysteria, she smiled, happy to see the love of her life. She lost sense of herself as if she were in a dream and turned to greet her mate--she loved him so much. Then, her smile suddenly faded as her consciousness flickered. She saw Koru screaming, roaring, but there was silence.

Dead silence.

Black tendrils crept across her vision and seized her, taking her away from her mate forever. The last thing she saw was the mental image of Koru smiling, looking into her eyes with that same old heart-warming expression. I will miss you...

Koru's bloodcurdling roar pierced through the thunder and wind and rain. He had watched in horrific terror as Tyrand killed Reesa. His teeth had sunk into the base of her skull as she was turned around, distracted. It was his fault. All of it--his fault. Koru surged forward like lightning, carried by anger, fear, and remorse. His body and mind were numb.

Koru jumped onto Tyrand, whose eyes were filled with bloodlust and rage, and clawed at him, tearing apart his already ruined scales. Tyrand fell. He fell and died without a fight as Koru's relentless strikes tore apart his bloody body. The final, dissonant chord of the storm sounded, and Koru still ripped and slashed until he was covered in Tyrand's blood. When he was finished, he cried out, howling as the storm began to pass.

Blinded by rage and savagery, Koru didn't notice Neekay until he struck the blue-scaled dragon down. Three long gouges sliced his flank, leaving three lines of blood dripping down his side. Koru groaned.

"How pitiful," Neekay said, "that the final chapter of your story ends here." Pain gripped Koru's body as he struggled to stand. Neekay mercilessly struck him again. "What a sad story it was, too. The weak, shy male finally finds a beautiful mate just to have her raped by someone bigger and stronger than him. He can't control her and she goes and gets herself killed--no--you helped kill her." A wicked grin curls at his lips. "She would have won the fight if you had not distracted her. My brother was weak, losing to a female like that. He deserved to die." Neekay growled and pushed Koru down, holding him in the mud. "But not by your claws, you wretch."

Koru cried out, weakly struggling against Neekay. The dragon was nowhere near as strong as his brother, but he was still stronger than Koru. "I could let you live," Neekay said as he pressed his claws to Koru's neck. "But there is no point, is there? You've given up."

Tears fell from Koru's eyes. The wicked beast was right. Without Reesa, he lost the will to live; there was almost no point.

But Bry thought differently.

The black-scaled dragon came crashing down into Neekay. Neekay yelped and fell heavily onto the ground. Eeve landed next to Koru moments after, checking on him. "Are you alright, Koru?" she asked, helping the blue dragon to his feet. Koru winced painfully, trembling as he walked toward the fighting dragons. "Koru, wait!" Eeve called after him, stepping in Koru's path. "Let Bry handle it."

Koru shook his head and leapt into the air, closing the distance between him and Neekay in just a few seconds. The bronze-scaled dragon was just beginning to stand as Koru collided with him, latching onto him with his claws. He rendered his hide as they rolled, tearing bloody pieces out of him. Neekay howled and kicked Koru off, but the blue dragon was immediately replaced by Bry. Bry lunged and sank his teeth into Neekay's neck, forcefully pulling him onto his back. Neekay roared and thrashed, but Bry held firmly to him, holding him down as he tried to claw him.

Without hesitation, Koru sprinted back over to finish the job and saw the fearful expression lit on the coward's face. It was the look of sheer terror. Koru grimaced. "Let him go," he told Bry. The black dragon released Neekay and stepped to the side, growling with blood dripping from his maw.

Neekay fought to his feet and stood head-to-head with Koru, a gleam of anger in his terrified, golden eyes. "The clan won't accept you!" he hissed. "You're exiled! You aren't welcome here!" He harshly coughed and blood fell from his mouth.

"Leave, Neekay," Koru commanded.

The bronze dragon growled viciously and began to limp away with his tail tucked between his legs, defeated. That was the last Koru ever saw of him.

Koru immediately hobbled back to Reesa and shut out the rest of the world. He stood over Reesa's slain body and cried profusely. Tears of anguish spilled from his eyes in a stream of regret. Neekay's evil words played again and again through his mind. _If I hadn't distracted her, she would be alive._He howled in grief and fell on top of her cold, soiled body. He nuzzled her neck, whispering, "Come back to me, my love." He repeated, "Come back," over and over until he couldn't speak. His throat seized up as his weeping turned violent. He cursed the Gods, he cursed the earth, and he cursed himself. Just like before, he couldn't protect his mate, the love of his life. And now she was dead. Light began to return to the gloomy earth as if the Gods were mocking him in his darkest time.

Bry and Eeve stood over him with tears falling from their cheeks. They mourned her death, too, having lost a good friend. Eeve was especially torn; Reesa had meant the world to her. She willingly mated with Eeve just as Koru did with Bry. She felt as if she lost a mate, too, but her feelings could never compare to Koru's. Yet she wept for a long time while Bry tried to comfort her.

Time seamlessly passed, continuing on regardless of their mourning. Eeve eventually settled down and nuzzled Koru, trying to get his attention. His sapphire eyes were motionless. He cried and cried, simply staring at Reesa's expressionless face.

"Koru... We have to move on," Eeve said. Bry nuzzled him, trying to comfort his friend. Despite their best efforts, Koru wouldn't budge.

"Koru, you can't stay here forever. She is gone."

"Leave me."

"Koru--"

"Leave me!" he shouted.

Eeve looked at Bry and they reluctantly flew away. The hours dragged on as the siblings waited for Koru. They sat on top of a hill in the distance, watching him and hoping he would move. They ended up sleeping there for the night.

Koru wept until he ran out of tears. Then he just brooded to himself, his body aching from lack of movement. He fell asleep on top of her body, waking up the next morning just as cold as she was. He thirsted for water, but he still refused to move. Hunger soon gnawed at his belly, too, but he refused to get up for another day. The smell of death surrounded him. Every agonizing minute was spent regretting the last moments of Reesa's life. He couldn't save her and ended up being the cause of her death. He would never forgive himself.

Koru briefly wondered what came next. He again realized that there was nothing left for him, just as Neekay had said. There was no point in continuing to live. He resigned his will to survive and lay there like a corpse. He noticed other dragons coming by, mostly Bry and Eeve, but there were a lot of his old clan mates that wanted to see the truth--their leader was dead. Koru heard murmurs about a rumor between Reesa and him, but he didn't care to listen. Traditionally, whoever killed the Alpha or beat him in battle would be the leader of the clan. But Koru refuted it.

The day led on into night. Koru lay awake and heard soft footfalls approaching him.

"Koru..." It was Bry, his ebony-scaled friend. "Eeve and I want you to return with us." He didn't receive a response, so he lay down next to Koru, wrapping a warm wing around his cold, stony body. "Listen... Reesa wouldn't want you to do this. She would want you to live free as you once were, to find another mate you can love. She wouldn't want you crying over her dead body. She would want you to cry over someone else because they matter just as much as she did to you. Every moment you lay here sulking is a moment you are wasting away.

"Don't forget Reesa. Don't ever forget her, but let her remind you of your good heart." Bry smiled and nuzzled Koru. "Let her be the light that guides you, that keeps you moving. Don't let her body drag you into the ground; let her spirit lift you up! You are much stronger than anyone I have ever met. You can overcome this."

"But I couldn't save her..." he sobbed. "She died because of me."

"You and I both know that is not true," he replied sternly. "We first met when you had fought courageously against the Alpha because he had harmed Reesa. You nearly died there; but when you awakened, the first thought on your mind was Reesa. You wanted to make sure she was alright. Then, you found that she was struggling with her own thoughts. You used every bit of strength remaining inside of you to fight against her persistent and stubborn emotions, too, and you won. You woke the second time, and that was when I saw the love between you two that will always remain--even through death--no matter what.

"I may never know what it is like to love someone that much. You had that opportunity. You still have that opportunity. It isn't the end of the world, Koru. Live the rest of your life with Reesa's kind spirit buried inside you!"

Koru listened to every word Bry said, remembering every happy moment he spent with his mate as emotion welled up inside of him. He felt the urge to finally move, so he did. His bones and muscles ached discouragingly, but he prevailed through the minor struggle. His wounds reopened and blood seeped from them; but Koru stood tall and proud, feeling warmth coming back to him as he moved his aching limbs. Bry smiled brightly with a few tears glistening on his cheeks. Koru nudged Bry affectionately.

"Bry... I can never repay you. Thank you... for everything."

Bry simply nodded his head. "As I said, you are welcome to return with us."

"I do not think I will..." Koru said. "I think I will go out on my own." He saw Bry's expression sadden. He gently nuzzled him and continued, "But I will definitely visit from time to time."

Bry smiled and Koru returned the expression. The black-scaled dragon left, leaping into the skies. Koru looked one more time at his surroundings. Both Tyrand's and the unknown dragoness' bodies were missing, but Reesa's remained in front of him. Then, he picked up Reesa's body, being as careful as he could with it, and carried it to the tree. Her limp body was difficult to carry alone, but he managed and gently laid it down. He dug a hole big enough for her and placed her in it, burying it in the earth. By the time he finished it was dawn. For a few more hours, he lay next to her grave, remembering all of the good times he had with her until he fell fast asleep.

When he woke, he knew it was time to go. He found a rose and placed it on Reesa's grave and left without saying goodbye or turning back because knew he wasn't leaving her behind. He was just leaving her body.