Chapter 1

Anger and aggression. Very different from each other yet are never the answer for many situations.

Dragons had anger from the beginning, just like any other creature.

Aggression breeds violence; some believe specific breeds hold it.

In a figurative world it would not exist, but in some realities, there is an ounce of aggression in everyone.

And it gives way to unpleasant results.

~oOo~

Trevor stood looking over the grounds of the Voutneth Academy. It had been quite the adjustment since the Academy and Drake were rebuilt and its past residents returned. A few tall men with horns, hooves, and blue skin walked past and Trevor smiled. Those men were Rukmar, one of many races that now attended Voutneth.

Drake was now a major city visited by many races from Dragoso now that Earth was connected with it once again. Trevor knew of all the races that could be found around Dragoso, but he never thought he would see so many of them in one place.

“Hey, what are you up to over here?” Trevor turned his head to see Vatuna, wrapping an arm around her waist.

“You know, just reflecting. We’ve been through a lot since Lust,” Trevor said. Vatuna smiled and laid her head against his shoulder. February had brought them the reopening of Voutneth and Drake and another blizzard, but Trevor was happy to have what he had now.

He and Vatuna had talked and started going out. So far they had been a bit casual with their relationship, spending time together and talking. They had shared a few kisses as well, but nothing beyond that.

“Yeah, it’s been interesting to say the least. It was nice of Kathey to give Mitsua and Galzra work here,” Vatuna noted. The twins in question had taken over Kathey’s previous role as Dragoso History teacher and they had been thriving with their new role. Especially since they had nowhere else to be. “So the actual reason I came out here was to pull you to their class. They’ve got quite a presentation coming up with special guests.”

“Special guests? Who?” Trevor raised an eyebrow.

“You’ll see.” Vatuna smirked and pulled Trevor by his hand inside and to the Dragoso History class just as the class was ending and students were walking out. Vatuna and Trevor waited for the class to empty before stepping in to see Mitsua and Galzra standing with two new faces.

“Trevor, Vatuna! Glad you two could make it, say hello to our new visitors,” Galzra exclaimed gesturing to the man and woman. The man stepped forward and held his hand out to Trevor.

“Name’s Cosmo. This is my mate, Catrina. Say hi, sweetheart,” Cosmo introduced. Catrina gave a little wave. It was easy to tell they were dragons from Dragoso, the biggest thing was their clothes, wearing cotton tunics, pants, and leather boots.

Cosmo had short bright purple hair and his eyes were white, but with a chrome look to them. He was lean but muscular and stood tall, slightly taller than Trevor. Despite being in a new environment, he was confident with his surroundings and around all these new people.

Catrina had chin length red hair while her eyes were dark red. She was petite and only came to Cosmo’s shoulder. She was standing close to him, a little timid about her surroundings but with Cosmo by her side, she was at least curious about everything.

“Cosmo and Catrina are Cosmic and Chaos Dragons,” Mitsua explained with a smile. Cosmo nodded, slinging an arm across Catrina’s shoulders.

“That’s right, two breeds, mortal enemies, but we’re in love,” Cosmo said and kissed Catrina’s cheek, making her blush. Trevor stared with surprise.

“Okay, history lesson?” Trevor requested.

“Sure. So Cosmic Dragons and Chaos Dragons, we live exclusively on Arcaneia, the Magic Class Dragon planet where Tenkkoa are from. Chaos Dragons live in constant inner turmoil which gives their name, barely in control of themselves and constant chaotic magic. Cosmic Dragons have always tried to keep balance within Chaos Dragons and that has always brought fights and what not. Catrina and I met at a young age and I guess I ground her, right?” Cosmo explained, looking to his mate who nodded.

“He helps me stay in control of my body and mind. It’s not easy, but we do what we can,” Catrina said softly and smiled. She lifted her left hand and Cosmo moved to clasp his right hand with her left and showed Trevor and Vatuna the small heart their thumbs made. “Cosmo did this for us, to show we’re two halves of a whole.”

“Aww! That’s so adorable!” Vatuna swooned. Trevor smirked and shook his head.

“Thanks for telling us your story, not the first pair to have a bond when your breeds are mortal enemies,” Trevor said, looking over at Galzra and Mitsua who both smirked. “Welcome to Voutneth.”

“We love it here so far, and we might even stay. Earth is quite nice, even if your sky isn’t purple from the magic,” Cosmo chuckled.

“The sky is purple?” Vatuna gaped.

“Yeah, and the trees grow gems and the water is indigo. It’s really different from Earth, but it’s what we’ve grown up with and have accepted. Earth will grow on us too though, the sky is so bright.”

“Sounds like it,” Trevor said and they all laughed. “Well, it was nice meeting you two.” Trevor held his hand out and Cosmo shook it again. Catrina smiled and nodded. Trevor and Vatuna nodded to her and they stepped out as the next class started filing in. “To think, all these new things we’ll be learning since Voutneth reopened.”

“Yeah... I wonder just how much more we’ll encounter,” Vatuna mused, hugging Trevor’s arm as they walked.

“Who knows.” They walked the halls for a while before catching sight of Kathey leaning in the doorway of the Med bay looking into the room itself. “Kathey? What’s going on?”

Kathey looked over from where she stood and sighed. “Nothing good, unfortunately,” she said and looked back into the room. Trevor looked over her into the room, spotting a young boy being looked over by Sereph. He had shaggy purple hair and his eyes were silver, though they seemed to almost be...glowing. He kept his eyes on Sereph as she checked him over, wide and watery. He was in just a medical gown with no shoes, but considering his feet were clean, he either lived as a dragon all of his life until now, or he usually wore shoes. “His name is Kael, he’s a Magic Dragon from Arcaneia.”

“What happened to him?”

“Myth Dragons killed his parents, he managed to get through portal securities in Orrumai and came here looking for help. He doesn’t have anyone else,” Kathey explained and sighed.

“How old is he?”

“Eight. I don’t have to imagine the trauma he’s been through. I saw it. He’s scared and confused right now. I’m not sure how to help him yet.”

Trevor hummed and slipped past Kathey into the room, over to Kael who looked up at Trevor with big, scared, watery eyes.

“Hey big guy, my name’s Trevor. What’s yours?”

“K-Kael...” the young boy replied, wiping his eyes. “I miss my ma and pa...” he sniffled.

“I’m sorry to hear that, Kael. But you’re not alone here. There’s all kinds of people and dragons here that’ll help you out.”

“Are you a dragon?” Trevor held up his hand and it glowed sky blue before being covered in clear dragon scales and his nails were now claws.

“Yup, I’m a Water-Ice Dragon, born here on Earth.” Kael held up his own hand and it glowed purple and it became a dragon’s hand as well. His scales were purple while his claws were silver. He gave Trevor a small smile as Sereph stepped over, holding out a set of folded clothes. Kael slipped off the table and Trevor stepped back, watching Kael pull the gown off and change into the clothes. Trevor noticed an unusual marking on Kael’s left shoulder. “Hey, what’s that?” Kael looked at it and shrugged.

“My parents gave it to me when I was born, it glows when I use magic,” Kael explained. He willed his hand to return to its human shape and Trevor watched the marking glow. “They told me it’s a rune that represents magic.”

“That makes you unique then.” Kael smiled and pulled his t-shirt on before starting out of the room into the hallway with Trevor behind him.

“What now?” Trevor asked Kathey who sighed.

“For now, Kael, I have a room open on my kids’ floor and you can hang around with them until we figure something out, alright?” Kathey asked and Kael nodded.

“Thank you Ms. Royals,” Kael said and Kathey smirked.

“No formalities, call me Kathey,” she advised and Kael nodded. Kathey looked up and smiled as Sandra and Sorren, Kathey’s Energy Dragon twins, came around the corner and made their way over to the group. “Sandra and Sorren will show you around, Kael.”

“Thank you,” Kael graced again and followed the twins down the hall while Sandra gushed over how great the Academy was.

“Is it normal for this to happen?” Trevor asked. “Kids getting orphaned because their parents get killed by their enemies?”

“Unfortunately. There’s no telling how many Myth Dragons have killed Magic Dragons and vice versa,” Kathey replied. “Dragons living in Dragoso had very few rules to follow, especially those that aren’t like Haarvik, Jarin’do, and Kyona that had rules to follow from their non-dragon form’s race.”

“What about Nyx?” Vatuna spoke up.

“She followed Elven rule, she was living on Orrumai when she met the others. I can’t begin to imagine just how many fledglings lost their families.” Kathey sighed and looked at Trevor and Vatuna who stood in silence now. “But we have bigger things to worry about. The Council is still at large and the threat of Rakasa being revived hangs over our heads until we get everyone locked up.”

“And there’s no telling how long that is going to take, right?” Trevor asked and Kathey nodded.

“Unfortunately, we’ll do what we can for now and adapt as needed, hopefully. I refuse to let anyone believe they can just disturb the balance of nature and use living creatures as slaves.”

“You sound pretty protective of it all, Kathey.”

“As a Flower Dragon, I value nature. As a Life Dragon, I value all life and balance within the world, as chaotic as it seems. Everything has equity to it, whether we see it as chaos or stability. To a Cosmic Dragon, Chaos Dragons are as they are named. But to a Chaos Dragon, they have their own means of normal. It is the duty of the Life Dragons to keep peace and maintain harmony.”

Trevor hummed. “I never thought of it like that. Being a Life Dragon is a huge responsibility, huh?”

“Yes, but it is why newly born Life Dragons should be made aware of their roles in the world so that they can learn to accept it early on in their lives and also train with the other Life Dragons should they be born by then. Malice, Sylark, Zoymey, and I learned of our roles late in our lives, it did put a strain on all of us, but we came together in the end. It took a long time, but we managed.” Kathey smiled and shrugged. “That is the life of a Life Dragon, I suppose.”

“Stress and huge burdens on your shoulders?”

“Pretty much.” Kathey smirked. “I’ll let you two get on with your day, sorry to keep you occupied here.” With a smile and a wave, Kathey went on her way back up to her office. Once she was out of sight, Trevor looked to Vatuna.

“No matter how hard we think life is, someone else has it worse than we do.”

“Yeah... but they all seem to have fallen into their roles really well and are making the most of life,” Vatuna noted and Trevor nodded.

“So what do you wanna do to pass the time? Since my siblings and I finished our lessons, we don’t really do much aside from what we normally do in our free time.” Vatuna hummed before perking up.

“How about a flight around the grounds then we can go visit the griffins, I’m sure Stephanie misses you.” Trevor smiled and nodded.

“Yeah, I haven’t visited her and Madix in a while, let’s go.” He took Vatuna’s hand and pulled her through the halls to head outside to the back of the grounds.

Though, before they could reach the doors to head outside, Malice was rushing in.

“Oh good, you two, perfect, we’re gonna need the extra hands, Severik has an issue in his classroom,” Malice said in a rush. Trevor and Vatuna exchanged glances.

“That can’t be good,” Trevor stated and they hurried after Malice.

Chapter 2

“You Sound Dragons just want to talk bad about quality music!” Jura snapped, struggling against Trevor’s hold on her. Nyveryll snarled and struggled against Malice’s grip on him.

“You Music Dragons can never agree that music is just glorified sound!” Nyveryll countered.

Trevor wasn’t entirely sure what was going on when Malice had stopped him and Vatuna in the halls. Jura, a Music Dragon, and Nyveryll, a Sound Dragon, had gotten into quite the fight in Severik’s class to the point they were using their powers and nobody could stop them, not even the Tenkkoa teacher himself. Malice and Trevor had managed to catch the two feuding students who were now just yelling at each other, but they refused to listen to reason.

“Malice as much as I love to wrestle with young dragons, what exactly are we to do with these two?” Trevor questioned, talking over the squabbling. Malice grit his teeth and growled.

“Alright enough!” Malice shouted and Jura and Nyveryll shut their mouths, looking to the Thunder Dragon. “If you two don’t quit fighting, I’m locking you both up in holding cells until you can act civil. Voutneth is neutral ground here, there’s no excuse for you two to be fighting this much.” Jura snorted and Nyveryll stared at the wall.

Malice released Nyveryll slowly and the Sound Dragon crossed his arms, glaring at the wall. Trevor released Jura who let out a huff and scuffed her shoe against the floor.

“You two don’t have to apologize to each other, but this fighting has to stop. If we have to switch schedules around so you two aren’t together in Severik’s class, we’ll do that, but until then, enough fighting.” Malice lectured. The two students both exhaled and started back into class, though Jura hit her shoulder against Nyveryll’s and the two snarled at each other, ready to attack again. “That’s it! Holding cells, both of you!” Malice restrained Nyveryll while Trevor restrained Jura.

They two were brought into the basement and shoved into cells across from each other, locked in and left to their own devices. Trevor shook his head at Jura. He and Malice started back upstairs.

“So mind telling me what the deal is with those two?” Trevor asked.

Malice hummed for a moment. “They’ve been here since we took down the hunters. Nyveryll first, then Jura. Sound and Music Dragons have been mortal enemies for years. We don’t really understand why. Nyveryll and Jura sometimes get along with each other, they squabble every once in a while, but that’s the worst it’s ever been.”

Trevor grimaced. “Let’s hope it’s nothing major and they’re just having an off day with each other.” Malice nodded in agreement.

“Luckily the rest of the Council can’t get their hold on me, Thunder Dragons are carefree.”

“What about Sloth though?”

“Eh... not really. We take our daily three hour naps and we’re good for the rest of the day. It’s routine, not easy to break that routine.” Trevor smirked and shook his head.

The two looked up when Brenda approached them in a hurry. “Trevor, there you are. Did you hear?”

“What’s going on?”

“Cosmo and Catrina got into a huge fight, they won’t speak to each other,” Brenda explained. Trevor looked at Malice who raised an eyebrow.

“Nyveryll and Jura just got into a fight too. Anything else unusual going on?” Malice asked.

“Uh... actually yeah... Mitsua and Galzra had an argument after Cosmo and Catrina had their fight.”

Malice huffed. “This isn’t good. The Council might be behind this, this is earlier than we expected for them to attack us again.”

“They don’t seem very bright, do they?” Trevor asked. Malice started upstairs with Trevor and Brenda following.

“They’re desperate to revive Rakasa, I wouldn’t put it past them to try anything possible, even the stupid ideas.”

“But they’re down two members, they can’t really revive him without all eight, right?” Brenda questioned and Malice stopped short, his head fell back and he sighed before he turned to face the two.

“Agony wasn’t the only one with immense power. All of them have forces of some kind working for them. And there’s no telling if any of the other members gained unique power after they broke free of their seals.”

Trevor and Brenda exchanged glances as Malice resumed up the flights of stairs.

“Is all of this really worth fighting for?” Brenda asked. “We don’t have to stay with the team... we can go back home to Mom, go back to school next year. We have control of our powers, we could live normal lives.”

Trevor didn’t answer right away. They had six more Council members to defeat and lock up in the Underworld. There was no telling what they would be facing with Wrath, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Envy, and Pride. Trevor already suspected Wrath or Envy was behind the most recent attack. The Council just continues to attack them. What would happen next? Trevor had already been abducted by Lust and now fights were breaking out in the Academy. The same Academy that was known for its neutral space and complete acceptance of anyone from Dragoso.

But... What would the team do if they were down four members? They wouldn’t have much power without the Compass Dragons. But they would lack in numbers if Trevor and his siblings left. And who was to say what Vatuna would do? They had a relationship. Would she follow Trevor or would she stay with the rest of the Exotics and lead them as she always had? At best, sixteen dragons would turn into twelve. Eleven if Vatuna left. If the rest of the Exotics left, Kathey would be back at her team of eight that she had before Trevor and his siblings arrived in June.

Trevor shook his head. “No. No, we're not leaving them. They have a huge mission and if we leave, they lose numbers that they could use. We may not be all powerful, but we’re still dragons, we can help,” He concluded with a nod.

Brenda nodded. “Okay.” They resumed up the stairs after Malice. “I kind of expected that answer, you know.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Mhmm. Mom used to say you were always like Dad. You never back out of a fight and always see things through to the very end. It’s why you made such a good football player.”

Trevor smirked and hugged Brenda around her shoulders. “Yeah, and you’re like Mom. You care a lot about family and are fiercely loyal to those you love.”

The two caught up with Malice who was standing on the stairs talking to Kathey who had sought him out. “I appreciate you two deciding to remain with the team to help us take down the Council,” Kathey said before looking back to Malice. “If what you say is true, then we’re dealing with probably the most dim witted member of the Council. Seeing as he likes to talk with his fists.”

“Wrath?” Trevor guessed and Kathey nodded.

“Yeah, Music and Sound, Sunrise and Sunset, and Cosmic and Chaos? Not to forget I’ve been feeling intense rage towards Sylark, but not necessarily acting on anything because I can see through the ruse at least a bit.”

“So what now?” Brenda questioned and Kathey crossed her arms, humming in thought.

“Considering how impatient Wrath is when it comes to waiting, I say we keep an eye out for any student taking their rage out on peers. Ignore anyone who is a Purple Dragon, they tend to have it out for pretty much everyone, I would know, I’m related to one. But there are exceptions.”

Trevor knew she was speaking of Gemini Amethyst, her past mate. It had been a long time since she brought him up. Kathey said he had left, though never told him why.

“A story for another time, Trevor,” Kathey said and Trevor smirked at her.

“Fair enough. So keep an eye on students then?” Trevor asked and Kathey nodded.

“That's all we can do for now.”

~oOo~

Piercing red eyes gazed at the goblet of blood that rested in front of a red throne. A hulking figure with green skin scowled at the surface.

“At least my plan is working, but they better move faster. I want to beat the scales off every one of those sniveling dragons!” Wrath roared and stood from his throne. “Move faster you idiots!”

“Warchief?” a voice spoke up.

“WHAT?!” Wrath shouted and faced one of his Orc Warriors that lived in the tower.

“The Mind Dragon awaits the arrival of Anna and what do you wish for us to do with the Cry-”

“Don’t say its name! You’ll draw the damn beast here!” Wrath interrupted the warrior. He exhaled and crossed his arms, looking to the cloudy sky above his fortress. A moment of calm from the rage fueled orc as he stared at the clouds and thought for a moment. “Leave the beast in its tower, we do not need them learning of the secrets the Council holds in their homes. Those damn dragons are powerful as it is, they do not need even more power added to their arsenal.”

“Understood, Warchief,” The warrior said and Wrath dismissed him with a nod and he walked over to his throne, sitting himself in it and looking to the goblet of blood. The surface rippled and Wrath sat up a little straighter, leaning forward as Pride’s face appeared in the red liquid.

“Greetings, Wrath. I assume everything is going well?” Pride questioned and Wrath grinned.

“Almost everything is going as planned, Pride. Sound and Music, Cosmic and Chaos, and Sunrise and Sunset have gotten into major fights at the stupid school. Anna and the annoying Ice Compass Dragon have yet to fight, however. I have not cut my influence yet,” Wrath replied. Pride smiled and nodded.

“Good, very good, Wrath. Maybe you are more than just a rage fueled brute after all. At least you can follow orders, unlike Lust.” Wrath snorted, but kept his grin.

“Lemme tell you something, Pride. Almost all Orcs are brutes, but the smart ones use their strength for useful things like beating the snot out of dragons that meddle in affairs that don’t concern them.”

Pride chuckled and shook his head. “Don’t ever change, Wrath. I must tend to my own business now, keep me updated if you would.”

“Sure thing, elfy.” Wrath watched the image distort before it faded and he stood, stretching his arms up and yawning loudly.

To think Pride of all people would praise him. To be fair, Lust was an idiot and kidnapped males and she didn’t have adequate strength to face a bunch of dragons. Wrath on the other hand? Orcs alone have been known to fight with dragons since the lizards appeared. Wrath looked to his left hand, squeezing it into a fist and growling a bit.

To think what made Wrath a living, breathing Orc, was just the flesh of-

Wrath spun and struck the obsidian pillar that he had been standing next to. The stone cracked, but the structure remained standing. He smirked smugly and pulled his hand away, brushing them off before turning to sit on his throne again.

“It won’t be long before my influence spreads to the rest of that school. Dragons will attack each other, old grudges between elves and dwarves shall rise again, everyone will have a bias against the Rukmar again, Faunus will lose all control over their bodies and fight amongst themselves. Anna’s foolish delusion of a perfect neutral ground will come crumbling, breaking her spirit. She’ll come, spirit weak, and then. THEN. I shall win Master Rakasa’s favor for defeating the Compass Dragons and giving him the human planet.” Wrath chuckled. “Mark my words, Pride, you will not be Rakasa’s favorite for much longer if my plan works out.”

He frowned suddenly and looked around before checking the goblet. “I need to quit monologuing out loud, if Pride heard any of that, he’d have my head for it.” Wrath shook his head and got to his feet, a walk around his fortress sounded like a good idea now, maybe put a few more holes in the walls.

Chapter 3

Trevor relaxed on the couch with his arm over the back, Vatuna sitting right next to him. It had been a while since they even used the conference room. But their meeting this time was important. Everyone sat or stood around the couches in the room waiting for the entire team to gather and for Kathey to start the meeting about Wrath.

Trevor looked up when Kathey and Sylark walked through the door, making the entire team present and she stood at the head of the table. Kathey leaned her hands on the table and exhaled.

“Wrath isn’t very bright so it seems. He attacked us fairly quickly and it’s clear to us that he means business. He wants to break us down, split up the team. Sylark and I are the only ones in the team who seem to have felt Wrath’s influence. We’re immune to it, but that doesn’t mean he won’t try to affect the rest of you.” Kathey looked to Haarvik, a Rukmar Moon Dragon. “I won’t be surprised if some of us whose dragon breeds are mortal enemies start causing fights within the team itself.” Haarvik swallowed and shifted his weight on his hooves. Moon Dragons have always been mortal enemies with Flower Dragons, and their own team leader was a Flower Dragon. “Make sure you’re aware of the risks, should Wrath attack the rest of the team. If we have to lock up members for safety reason, I’ll do that. I don’t need our team falling apart and letting the Council just waltz right in and take us down.”

“That is the last thing we need,” Sylark chimed in and Kathey nodded in agreement.

“Be sure you know your breed. Not everyone was raised as a dragon here, I wouldn’t put it past Wrath to use ancient instincts to make us turn on each other.” There was silence around the room for the moment. “Use the books in the library, every breed that’s been discovered so far is in there. Which means everyone on this team can read up on their breed’s enemies. Keep me informed if you see anything unusual. Dismissed.” Some members stood and started out, others remained, nervous and unsure of what to do.

Trevor looked to Vatuna who seemed worried. “What’s wrong?”

“The Exotics. If any of them go under Wrath’s influence, it’ll cause mayhem within the team. Glacier Dragons are enemies with Ice Dragons, Coral Dragons hate Water Dragons, and Paradise Dragons despise Thunder Dragons. We’re in so much trouble...” Vatuna explained and hid her face in her hands with a sigh.

“We’ll get through it, don’t worry,” Trevor assured her, rubbing her back.

“Let us hope so, Trevor. Wrath is a lot more clever than I expected of someone who solves problems with his fists,” Kathey spoke up before she walked out.

Trevor watched Kathey walk out before getting to his feet and holding a hand to Vatuna. “Come on. We had plans before all this chaos came up.” Vatuna looked at Trevor’s hand before taking it with a smile.

The two made their way out into the chilly afternoon air and through the snow to the heated stable where the griffins lived. The sliding open of the doors caught the attention of the griffins in their stalls, poking their heads out to investigate and greet their visitors.

The hibernation months were almost over and all the females were due to lay eggs next month, Trevor was excited to see what would be produced. This was the first time he ever experienced something like this, constantly asking Malice questions about it and learning what he could.

Trevor made his way down to Stephanie’s stall. The beautiful blue griffiness cooed a greeting to Trevor and received some love from him.

“Hey, Steph. How are you holding up?” Trevor asked her and Stephanie started preening his hair. “Yeah? You miss grooming me?” he chuckled and Stephanie tossed her head up, bopping it and chirping. Vatuna stood at the stall beside Stephanie’s, stroking the white griffiness in it.

“Hard to tell they have eggs just by sight, huh?” Vatuna observed.

“Malice mentioned doing an ultrasound on them to see if he could get a read on how many eggs to expect from all the females. He’s hoping for a few royal eggs from Stephanie, that female he bred Thunder to, and Midnight.”

“Wait a royal was bred with Midnight?”

“Yeah, the outspoken indigo he called Hype.”

“Oh yeah.” The griffin in question was a very unique specimen that liked to speak his mind. He caused quite a ruckus within the stable until he went back home.

The only griffin that didn’t belong to them that stayed was the yellow griffiness that was paired with Thunder. Once she laid her eggs, she should be going home. She was a gentle female, a little shy and skittish, but she seemed to really like Malice. He had been working on her confidence while she was at the Academy. She seemed to be doing a lot better.

Trevor patted Stephanie’s neck and she warbled at him. “Yeah I missed seeing you too. Been busy with dragon stuff lately.” Stephanie snorted and continued to love on Trevor while he watched Vatuna with Snowflake.

“Hey Trevor? Do you think us capturing the Council will be enough to stop them from reviving Rakasa?” Vatuna asked. Trevor hummed in response. It was a pretty good question after all.

They had Agony and Lust locked up so far, their ultimate goal was to capture all eight members of the Council to stop them from ever attempting to revive their master. But would it be enough? Would it hold until they captured everyone. Trevor had seen a total of nine chambers in the Underworld, did Deathbore plan on capturing Rakasa as well? A creature more powerful than Deathbore himself? A being as dangerous as Rakasa? Would it be enough?

“I hope so, Vatuna. Else it’ll be a never ending cycle that Earth and Dragoso can’t withstand forever. So many lives would be lost, who’s to say the Compass Dragons would survive something like that over and over again.”

“But the first group of Compass Dragons managed to seal them away before.”

“And those seals broke. We don’t know if they’re even weak enough to seal away and if the current Compass Dragons even have the strength to lock them away that long. This is why they shouldn’t be put into their own pocket dimensions where they can’t be watched for weaknesses in their seals.”

“So you think that’s the right idea?” Vatuna looked at Trevor with such a... he didn’t even know how to describe the look she gave him. Upset? Wait...

“You think it’s wrong that we’re locking them in cells in the Underworld where Deathbore can keep an eye on them?” Trevor questioned.

“It’s a little harsh, don’t you think?”

Trevor raised an eyebrow. “Vatuna, you can’t be serious! They’re monsters who don’t care about life. They want every living being dead so they can take over! It’s not harsh, it’s what they deserve.”

“What makes you think those chambers are even a good idea? If the Council is gathered in one place, who’s to say they won’t be able to combine their powers, break free, and summon Rakasa?” Trevor felt his rage grow to a boiling point, then... realization.

“Why are we even arguing about this?” The two stared at each other.

“Wrath! That son of a hellhound!” Vatuna snapped. Snowflake chirped at her and she stepped away. “We better make sure he hasn’t spread to the rest of the academy, who knows what anyone could be arguing about.” The two hurried out of the stables.

“Or who’s talking with their fists,” Trevor added as they ran across the grounds and to the main building. Right away Trevor almost got hit by an Orc swinging his fist at a Naga. Had he not brought up his arm covered in scales, his arm would’ve been broken. “Hey, hey! Break it up!” Trevor snapped. Both students were a good foot taller than he was, but he wouldn’t let that intimidate him. “What’s the issue?”

“Fish breath over there was trying to steal my stuff!” The Orc snapped, pointing a finger at the Naga who hissed.

“If I wanted your stuff, I wouldn’t take it from a clanless Orc like you!” The Naga retaliated. The Orc roared and Trevor put his hands on the warrior’s shoulders.

“Stop! This isn’t how we act at the Academy, remember? What’s Kathey’s biggest thing about Voutneth?” Trevor asked. The two glared at each other.

“Unity and common ground,” the Naga said, the tension in his shoulders relaxing. The Orc backed off a bit and crossed his arms.

“Fighting gets us nowhere.” The Orc exhaled. “I apologize for accusing you of trying to steal my things.”

“And I apologize for lashing out like I did.” The Naga replied. “I am never one to lash out like that, what on Earth is going on?”

“The Council, that’s what. We gotta go find Kathey,” Trevor said. He grabbed Vatuna’s hand and pulled her towards the stairs. “This is bad. Orcs and Rukmar have the most strength out of everyone here. If Wrath makes all the Orcs mad...”

“I don’t even want to think about that,” Vatuna said. They stopped short when they spotted Zoymey breaking up a fight between an Orc and a Rukmar.

“Knock it off!” the Earth Dragon snapped.

“Common ground reminder,” Trevor suggested and the two students that were fighting glanced at each other before looking at Trevor. “Voutneth is about unity and common ground, not fighting and who is what.”

“Ah, yes, he is right. We are all just students here, we aren’t any less or more than everyone else here,” the Rukmar agreed and the Orc huffed but nodded. They started downstairs now that their argument has been resolved.

“Thanks for that. There’s been fights breaking out all over the place with Orcs and all the other races here,” Zoymey said.

“We just broke up an argument between an Orc and a Naga,” Vatuna informed Zoymey who nodded.

“Yeah, they always have had issues, usually minor squabbles, but nothing of this magnitude.”

“What should we do?” Trevor asked.

“Kathey needs to know what’s going on,” Zoymey replied.

“She already knows.” The three looked up to see Sylark descending the stairs. “Kathey has decided we must locate the portal to Wrath’s domain and stop him immediately. This magnitude of fights within the Academy will have us far too distracted and will put our defenses in jeopardy.”

“Already? We only just figured out his intentions today. Isn’t it a little early to be attacking him?” Trevor asked.

“Won’t he be expecting us?” Vatuna added and Trevor nodded in agreement. Sylark and Zoymey glanced at each other before Zoymey exhaled.

“He will, but having to choose between the Academy falling into chaos causing our defenses to lower and us attacking him while we’re still semi-functional as a team, the best thing to do is to attack now instead of waiting for him to strike. No telling what he has in his army.”

Trevor and Vatuna looked at each other before nodding. “We’ll let the rest of the team know,” Trevor offered.

“I shall alert Sonar, Tikimune, Samuel, and Arkin,” Sylark offered.

“Find the Sunscape Twins and Cosmo and Catrina, we could use their help,” Zoymey requested.

“But... aren’t they all having rivalry issues?” Vatuna questioned. Zoymey smirked.

“Considering we know who is behind it, I think they will want to attack Wrath more than they want to argue with each other,” Zoymey said.

Trevor snorted. “I hope you’re right, Zoymey. Or Wrath will use them to break our team apart.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of, but we’re taking a chance. Move out!” The group scattered to seek out their team.

“Do you think this will work?” Vatuna asked Trevor.

“God I hope so, or else the Council will be attacking sooner than we will ever suspect.”

Chapter 4

While Trevor and his siblings had only worn their armor once, it was somehow already ingrained into them on how to get everything on and be comfortable in their gear. Kathey stood nearby, already in her armor watching everyone else get their stuff on. The way she had her arms crossed and a neutral face was unsettling. Trevor wasn’t sure how it was unsettling, but it was. Kathey glanced at Trevor and he swallowed before returning his focus to his gauntlets as he tightened the straps at his forearms.

“Kathey’s worrying me,” he said to whoever was listening to him. That happened to be Brenda and Ractor, the two had been talking quietly. They looked at each other before looking at Trevor.

“Why?” Ractor asked. Trevor glanced at the girl in question.

“The way she’s just... watching us. Look at how she’s standing too, there’s no way that’s a relaxed and confident stance. She’s close to breaking or something, I don’t know. But the way she’s looking at us has me uneasy,” Trevor rambled.

“To be fair, she has faced a lot in her life, the Council is probably the most formidable enemy she’s ever had,” Brenda reminded them.

“You would be incorrect,” a voice spoke up and the three looked behind Trevor to see Sylark standing there. “Kathey’s greatest foe was Amethyst’s Demon. His power forced the Gods to come to Earth, and even convinced Deathbore to assist in its defeat. But the Council is proving to do something similar here. We have gathered many allies since then, something unheard of with the previous Compass Dragons.”

“Times change, huh?” Trevor noted and Sylark nodded.

“Indeed. Do not worry about Kathey. Once Wrath is defeated, I have a feeling she will relax just a small amount. Not much, but some.” Sylark gave his rare smile and joined Kathey in her observation of the team as they donned the last few pieces of gear.

Everyone had their armor on and weapons strapped to bodies before Kathey stood before the team with Malice, Sylark, and Zoymey. She looked over her team before exhaling.

“Wrath’s attack on the Academy has been our greatest challenge yet. Turning us against each other to prove that old rivalries will forever be ingrained in our minds. We’re going to search for his portal and show him that his rage will forever be his downfall,” Kathey spoke out. “Let’s go show that rage fueled Orc what it means to have true teamwork and loyalty!” She thrusted her fist into the air. The Compass Boys did the same before the entire team mimicked her stance.

The group radiated various colored glows before twenty-three dragons stood ready to go. Tikimune, as usual, was riding on Sonar’s back since the former only had one wing and the latter was blind. With a motivational roar from Anna, the Voutneth Team took to the skies to search for Wrath’s portal.

It was easier said than done, however, considering the last time they found a portal belonging to the Council, they had a scent to track. But they did have an advantage this time.

Catrina flew beside Anna, looking around as they did. Catrina may have been a Chaos Dragon, but she could sense chaos as well. The breed was drawn to it, according to Cosmo. Trevor wasn’t sure how to feel about using this method since Catrina was a rather unstable dragon, but he had to trust Anna’s choices. They didn’t have much choice anyway, lest they allow Wrath to attack while the team as a whole was unstable.

Twenty-four members of the team though... it was a lot of power, almost a small army. Many would question if the number of dragons was really necessary for a team like this, but taking into account just how strong their enemies were, it couldn’t be helped. They needed the numbers and the power.

Trevor snorted when he noticed Catrina focusing on something and flying after it. Anna stopped, as did the rest of the team and watched Catrina chase after a... seagull?

“What’s up with the Council and birds? Lust had a dove and now this seagull,” Trevor noted.

Catrina released a beam of red energy and hit the gull dead on. The bird fell to the ground before it burst into a puff of red smoke. Much like the dove had with Lust’s portal, a spark appeared before a red and black swirled portal appeared. Catrina landed before it as Anna approached.

“Is this what you were looking for?” Catrina asked and Anna rumbled a bit.

“Lust’s portal was accessed the same way. I’m not entirely sure why they are using birds, then again it is a rather good way to hide portal access,” Anna said before looking to the team as they all landed. “Wrath no doubt has many forces, do not worry if we get split up. After dealing with Lust, it’s obvious their dungeons are their own pocket dimensions; we won’t get lost as long as we stay within the dungeon itself. Last chance, if anyone wants to back out, they can.”

Nobody said a word. Anna nodded and looked to the portal again before stepping through. The rest of the team followed right behind her.

~oOo~

Trevor half expected there to be a welcome party alongside a rather scary looking place or something. He didn’t expect to be in a courtyard surrounded by brick walls and a tower that didn’t look remotely safe to be in. He also didn’t expect to appear on the other side of the portal in his human form.

“It seems Wrath is somewhat smart, disabling the use of our dragon forms,” Kathey said, looking at her hands.

“What are we supposed to do if we have to face a dragon?” Vatuna questioned and Kathey smirked.

“Many dragons think it’s pointless to learn how to fight with a weapon, but this is exactly why I have my team learn a weapon. Should we be unable to use our dragon forms, we have a means of fighting.” Kathey looked around a bit and up at the tower. “Let’s do what we came here to do.” With weapons drawn, Kathey led the team to the entrance of the tower.

There were holes in the walls and beams that didn’t really support the structure, yet somehow it was still standing. It was rather unusual to say the least.

The team came to a rather large room with a raised platform, torches at either corner. There were staircases on either side of the room and walkways leading to the platform. Near the back of the room past the platform appeared to be another staircase.

“Shouldn’t there be enemies here? Warriors, or undead, or something?” Trevor asked.

“None of the Council would have an empty dungeon, Lust had her demons hiding all over the place. Wrath isn’t this stupid... something’s up...” Zoymey remarked.

Suddenly, there was a flash and smoke appeared on the platform before clearing to reveal a tall, green skinned orc, red eyes filled with rage.

He was wearing minimal armor but the gauntlet he wore was impressive all the same. A lot of his green skin showed and the muscle he had was impressive as well. Wrath wasn’t one to skip out on training, his body showed as much.

“Wrath.” Kathey snarled, lowering her body and keeping her feet spread apart to give her a sturdy stance, sword at the ready and shield blocking her torso from any surprise attack. Wrath crossed his arms and glared at the team.

“Took you long enough! Now you all can really enjoy what I have in store for you,” Wrath shouted before disappearing. His voice, however, still bellowed within the room. “Warriors! Do not let the dragons escape! The one to bring me Anna Dragon’s head will be greatly rewarded!” As Wrath spoke, orc warriors emerged from various portals and charged at the team.

Trevor and Kathey ended up back to back, their shields up as each blocked the axes of two Orcs. Kathey put her weight against Trevor and kicked at the orc that had her pinned before slashing at him. Trevor dug his feet into the ground and pushed against the orc that had him pinned, surprising him before he thrusted his blade into the warrior’s chest. Trevor withdrew his blade and turned his attention to another group of orcs.

“We’re outnumbered, what do we do?” Trevor asked. He blocked another blow and bashed the orc in the face with his shield before stabbing him in the chest and reclaiming his blade.

“We have to find Wrath!” Malice exclaimed, slicing the calf of one orc and kicking him in the back once he dropped to his knee. “All magic is disabled for us.”

“I was wondering why my blades were not freezing them,” Sylark noted as he sliced his blades across an orc’s throat and let his body drop.

“There’s a staircase over there!” Trevor exclaimed, spotting it at the back of the room. Kathey looked to Jarin’do then to Ferentar.

“Staff users! Sweep them off their feet!” Kathey commanded. Jarin’do and Ferentar went back to back before nodding to each other. Ferentar dropped to the floor, sweeping his staff at the orcs’ feet, causing quite a few to fall over, some toppling others over from their weight. Jarin’do did the same with his side of the warriors before their numbers were dazed, giving the team enough time to head for the stairs.

Kathey and Trevor guarded the stairs to be sure no orcs came after them before they rejoined the team; the orcs were all too dazed to chase after them for the time being. They seemed to appear in an armory of sorts, though very few usable weapons could be found.

“Well this is...interesting,” Trevor noted as Galzra and Mitsua looked around.

“Yeah. I suppose anything works, huh?” Brenda replied as she approached her brother.

“Hey, Kathey! Check this out!” Galzra called, pulling out an interesting looking sword and shield, Mitsua pulled out two whips, similar in style to the sword and shield. “Wonder why these look so similar to each other.”

“Who knows,” Kathey noted. She looked at the whips then at the sword and shield. Each weapon had a gem fixed to it, The sword and one of the whips had a red gem while the shield and the other whip had a blue gem. “Magic isn’t usable here, we’ll see what’s with those gems.”

They heard a commotion coming from the stairs; the orcs had recovered. “Move!”

Cosmo spotted a scythe and he grabbed it, standing at the landing of the stairs. “I’ll cover us,” he said. Catrina came up next to him with a bladed hula hoop.

“You’re crazy if you think I won’t help you,” Catrina said with a grin. The two took their stances while the rest of the team hurried through the room and eventually came to a staircase. Cosmo and Catrina joined them, weapons covered in blood.

“An easy win with a weapon like this,” Cosmo said, leaning on the scythe. “He’s bound to have more though so we should keep moving.”

Kathey nodded. “I doubt Wrath would have this few in numbers,” she stated and looked to the long staircase before them. Kathey led the team up the stairs and to a rather dark, seemingly empty room. Kathey got into a stance, looking around. “Keep your guard up, this is too unusual...”

Something shifted in the darkness, something large like the size of a dragon. Everyone looked to the sound as heavy footsteps approached, a dragon’s steps. Someone was still allowed to use their magic. A purple and black dragon came into the torchlight and snarled at Kathey.

“About time you arrived, Anna.” The dragon growled.

“Talia.”

Chapter 5

Without any warning, everyone except Kathey and Sylark feel extreme pain in their heads, a shrill sound that incapacitated them. Kathey looked back at her team before facing Talia.

“What do you want? Why are you working with Wrath?” Kathey demanded. Talia got in her face, snarling.

“You’ll pay for ruining my son!” Talia snapped, swiping at Kathey. She brought her shield up to block the swing. Sylark attempted to attack her back, being tripped by Talia’s tail.

“You never cared about Gemini! Why start now?” Kathey questioned. “You abandoned him as an egg! You never wanted him! Why in Kaylano’s name would you care now?”

Talia roared and lunged at Kathey. She brought her shield up and jumped back, out of range of Talia’s jaws. Seeing her that close, Kathey could see her eyes were red. She was being influenced! And being a Mind Dragon... there was no way Kathey would break the influence. Kathey exhaled through her nose. There was no other way.

“You’re dead!” Talia roared. Kathey avoided another attack and hurried to Sylark’s side, helping him to his feet.

“There’s no option, she has to be killed,” Kathey told him.

“How? We do not have our magic and nothing can pierce scales as easily as we would hope,” Sylark stated.

“We have our telepathy.” Sylark and Kathey jumped apart as Talia lunged at them again, snarling.

“Are you sure this will work?” Sylark asked as Talia set her eyes on Kathey again.

“Nope! Do it!” Kathey and Sylark focused their minds on Talia, hammering at her defenses. The dragon roared with pain as her mind was assaulted. It was enough that the rest of the team could recover from her own telepathic assault. But as expected, Wrath’s soldiers were on them again.

Talia shook her head and snarled. “Fine then. The hard way it is.” she growled before lunging at Kathey. Kathey held her shield up to block the jaws trying to close around her and she swung her sword, hitting Talia right in her snout. Talia snarled and reared up, only to have Sylark jump onto her back and drive his blades through her scales into her flesh, holding on.

“You’ll all pay!” Talia roared. Kathey thrusted her sword right into Talia’s chest. The blade pierced her scales and went right into her heart. Kathey let her head drop as Talia stared. The blade was withdrawn swiftly and Talia collapsed. Kathey dropped to one knee and shut her eyes, sensing Talia’s mind fading as her heart stopped.

Kathey had not felt much remorse for past targets. But Talia... as much as Flower and Mind Dragons feuded over the years, Mind Dragons had never been truly evil. Killing Talia brought much sorrow to her heart.

With a deep breath, Kathey got to her feet, the blade in her hand growing hot. The magic was back!

“Cosmo!” Kathey called.

“On it!” Cosmo replied. He started glowing purple, as did his scythe before he twirled it and a purple barrier appeared, separating the team from the orcs they were fighting.

“Some of you need to stay put in case the barrier breaks,” Kathey said. Catrina, Galzra, and Mitsua nodded, turning to the barrier. The rest of the team looked to Kathey. “Let’s go.”

~oOo~

Wrath sat in his throne, ankle resting on his knee, elbow on the armrest, and chin on his hand, watching for the meddlesome dragons. It had been quiet since Talia’s last roar and while he would never admit it, Wrath was worried.

Did they actually kill her? If they could overcome Talia’s telepathic strength, what did that mean for Wrath? Would this be the end for him?

No! Of course not. Wrath was a mighty orc and a powerful Warsong Dragon! No two bit dragon team was going to defeat him that easily. Still, the Warchief swallowed nervously as he waited.

Finally, he spotted Kathey leading the group to the top of the stairs and to the top of the tower where Wrath waited. He got to his feet and crossed his arms.

“Impressive! Ascending this far with thousands of warriors and a Mind Dragon in the way,” Wrath stated. The team took their stances. “I’m sure you believed it to be that easy, yes?” Wrath pulled a rather large animal horn from where it was strapped to his lower back.

“Hardly,” Kathey countered and Wrath bared his teeth.

“Then I’ll give you a challenge!” he roared before blowing into the horn. The sound bellowed through the air. Wrath lowered the horn and listened, head tilted up a bit.

The team looked around, cautious. Suddenly, the tower seemed to creak, slow scratching reached their ears. Wrath grinned and looked at his enemies.

Over the edge of the wall climbed a giant icy spider, fangs coated in ice. The creature spotted the team and screeched. “Cryantula! Before you is a feast of dragon flesh! Enjoy!” Wrath cackled. His wings appeared and he flew into the air out of reach of the icy beast as it set its eyes on the team.

“What do we do?” Trevor asked, shield raised. “That thing is huge, we’ll never kill it...”

Kathey stared at it as it slowly approached, fangs moving as it walked. “No...no we don’t have to kill it. Just scare it off, keep it occupied. Listen up! Dragon wings! Stay out of its reach! Zoymey, with me! We’re going after Wrath.”

The team summoned up their dragon wings, save for Sonar and Tikimune. Sonar became dragon and Tikimune jumped onto his back before everyone took to the air. Kathey and Zoymey flew after Wrath who flew higher.

“Watch yourself, Wrath is powerful with his strength alone,” Zoymey warned.

“I know, Zoymey,” Kathey said, flapping her wings harder. Zoymey flew past her, right at Wrath and swung his axe. Wrath actually grabbed the blade and snarled. “Zoymey!” Kathey flew up and shot Wrath with her Earth Shot, launching the orc away.

“I didn’t think that would happen... we might need a new plan,” Zoymey said.

“Magic. It’s the best we can do. Could be why he had a block on all magic use. Orcs were never big on it anyway,” Kathey said.

“How am I supposed to help with that, Kathey? I’m just an Earth Dragon, I can’t use much.” The two dragons barrel rolled out of the way of Wrath’s hulking form as he charged at them.

“Our breath elements are magic! Use it!” Kathey flew after Wrath. Wrath spun suddenly and swung his fist at Kathey. She raised her shield to block the blow, the sound of something heavy hitting metal echoed through the air. Kathey bared her teeth while Wrath just smirked. He pulled his other fist back to punch the shield again, only to get hit by Zoymey’s Earth Shot. Wrath fell right onto Cryantula, squishing the spider off its feet.

Cryantula groaned a bit before standing and setting eyes on the team. It turned and kicked the icy hairs from its abdomen.

“No, you stupid spider! Don’t-” Wrath scolded the creature before coughing violently and falling off Cryantula. Under the hulking monster, Wrath glowed red and he grew in size. Cryantula stopped kicking its hairs just as Wrath grew to half the spider’s size and spit fire on its underside.

Cryantula screeched and reared up, giving Wrath an opening to claw at its underbelly. The beast fell backwards off the tower. Wrath roared down at it before facing the team, rage in his eyes. He looked at Trevor and immediately pounced on him.

“Trevor!” Brenda exclaimed. Trevor raised his shield to protect himself. Wrath knocked Trevor off his feet before looking to the rest of the team.

Everyone charged at Wrath, but it was futile. Wrath was far too strong. He swiped his claws, swung his tail, spit fire, and threw his weight at them. It was almost no use against the hulking dragon.

“Dammit! Malice, Sylark, Zoymey! Combined attack! Now!” Kathey shouted. The Compass Dragons came together. Wrath scoffed and snorted, bracing himself and facing them. The four powerful dragons released their breath elements at the same time, the pure dragon magic consuming Wrath’s body.

Just when they thought it was working, fire suddenly overpowered their elements and threw the Compass Dragons from their formation. Wrath laughed and stood practically unscathed.

“Foolish Dragon! You cannot defeat me, pure strength will always triumph over magic!” Wrath bellowed and laughed again. He shook his wings out and snorted, ready for another onslaught of attacks when a shadow was suddenly cast over him and the rest of the team. Wrath stared at the shadow for a moment before looking back.

Cryantula raised its front legs and screeched at Wrath before driving its fangs down at him. The beast had managed to survive Wrath’s attack and was back with a vengeance. Wrath jumped from the fangs that tried to impale him and roared. “Damn spider!” Wrath shouted and blew fire at it. Cryantula stumbled backwards and screeched. Wrath sent another lick of fire at it and it toppled over the edge of the tower, it’s sounds cut off suddenly. Wrath looked over the edge and snorted.

The shock finally wore off, Kathey saw an opening and took it. She turned to her dragon form and inhaled. Wrath looked back at her just as she released the Life Breath on him. The orc-dragon shrieked as he was engulfed in holy magic.

Anna closed her mouth and the smoke cleared, revealing Wrath in his orc form. He panted as his skin smoked. “You...will never win! Master Rakasa...will rise again!” Wrath shouted.

Out of nowhere, the flat side of an axe hit Wrath in the head and the orc collapsed, unconscious. Haarvik stood behind him and shook his head. “Idiot,” he muttered and everyone relaxed.

“Thank the Gods we have you on the team, Haarvik,” Anna said and Haarvik chuckled.

“Thank Terasona, she is a Moon Dragon after all.”

“Either way, it’s fortunate the Night Walkers are our allies. I have to take Wrath to the Underworld. I trust you will all return home safely?”

“Of course, Anna,” Zoymey assured her. Anna nodded and her amulet started to glow, the dragon on it turning pink. A portal to the Underworld appeared and Anna looked to the team.

“Fly safe everyone!” Anna graced. She grabbed the strap at Wrath’s shoulder and dragged him through the portal. They came out into Deathbore’s throne room, the Death Dragon himself sat upon his platform throne.

“Ah! Anna! Welcome back to the Underworld, my niece! I see you defeated Wrath!” Deathbore greeted her.

“We just did, yes. He was a formidable foe, but he was beaten in the end,” Anna said.

“Bring him this way,” Deathbore said, standing from his platform.

~oOo~

Trevor stepped over to the edge of the tower where Cryantula had fallen. “What even happened to- oh...” The giant ice spider had been impaled on a spire, it’s legs curled to its abdomen and giant spider blood and guts leaked from the fatal wound. “Damn... Wrath did a number on that thing.”

Trevor looked up and spotted a somewhat smaller tower connected by a walkway. The tower looked to be coated in ice, as if Cryantula actually lived in the tower. It certainly looked big enough to house the spider, width wise anyway.

“It was for the best, that beast would’ve killed us if it managed to kill Wrath,” Zoymey stated. The two watched Cryantula’s body for a moment. Its burn wound from Wrath’s fire started to disintegrate, then its whole body started to turn to dust. Trevor watched as four small light blue orbs floated there for a moment before shooting into the sky and disappearing.

“What the hell was that?” Trevor asked.

“If it’s not attacking us, we don’t have to worry, come on. Let’s get going,” Zoymey said, patting Trevor’s shoulder. “You did good today, Trevor.” Zoymey walked away and Trevor looked back up at the sky. He really hoped it wasn’t something bringing a much stronger foe.

That was the last thing any of them needed...

Chapter 6

Trevor crossed his arms as he watched the snow fall through the window. The battle with Wrath took a lot out of all of them, luckily the team had some time to just relax and recover. Which Trevor would’ve been doing had something not nagged at him.

Anxiety about the rest of the Council, the orbs that came from Cryantula, and worry for his siblings and Vatuna.

“Hey,” A sweet voice spoke up, pulling Trevor from his thoughts. He looked over to see Vatuna standing there.

“Hey,” Trevor greeted.

“What are you doing up?”

“Couldn’t sleep. Got a lot on my mind.” Vatuna wrapped her arms around one of Trevor’s arms and looked out at the snow as well. “You?”

“Ractor and I are still reeling from the fight.” Trevor nodded and sighed. “Trevor, I’ve realized something.”

“What’s that?”

“We’re gonna be facing a lot in the coming months since we only have three of the Council members captured,” Vatuna started. “I don’t want something happening to us and having regrets.”

“What are you talking about?” Trevor asked. Vatuna leaned up and kissed him.

“I’m talking about taking our relationship to the next level.” Trevor stared.

“Are you sure?”

“No regrets.” Vatuna said, taking Trevor’s hand and smiling at him. “I’m ready.” She pulled him towards her room.

~oOo~

Kathey stood on the roof of the academy, looking out over Drake. The snow fluttered around her but she hardly even shivered. A lot had happened since they returned from Wrath’s tower. Cosmo and Catrina officially joined the team, pairing up with Mitsua and Galzra and calling themselves the Peacekeepers considering Sunrise Dragons and Sunset Dragons were usually mortal enemies as were Cosmic Dragons and Chaos Dragons. Yet Mitsua and Galzra were siblings and Cosmo and Catrina were mates. It really was a representation of keeping peace with your enemies.

Along with the new additions to the team, the young Magic Dragon, Kael, finally had a home. Kathey had adopted him as her sixteenth child and the fourth fledgling she had adopted. Kael deserved a home and he had grown comfortable at the academy.

Kathey looked up to the sky and sighed softly. “Someday... someday I’ll give them the life they all deserve,” Kathey mused.

~oOo~

A wooden stein was slammed down on the armrest of a throne, red eyes staring into a goblet of blood. Wrath pouting in a cell in the Underworld.

“Damn these fools! We’re getting nowhere like this!” The figure stood from his throne and stepped down. Coming into the light overlooking an arena was Gluttony. He watched the stone soldiers battle each other. “Minions!” He shouted. The soldiers ceased their fighting and turned their attention to Gluttony. “Make preparations, we’ll be having some guests in a few months time.”

Gluttony turned to his throne, looking past it where a dragon laid unconscious. Quite a beautiful breed, the Nebula Dragon with their varying patterns of blue, purple, pink, and white. Gluttony’s eyes landed on the metal leg the dragon had. “Nebula!” he shouted. The dragon opened his eyes and stood at attention. “Good. I have a special task for you. Understand?”

“Yes, Master Gluttony. I am at your disposal...” Nebula spoke, his black orb eyes trained on Gluttony.

“Very good. We will have our vengeance on that damn Anna Dragon and her team. And then! We shall revive our master!” Gluttony bellowed and laughed.