Chapter 103: A Look to the Past
The Copper Lotus was far more subdued than usual. News of the tragedy had passed through the clan quickly. That morning, Fenn had hosted a ceremony to release the spirits of the hatchlings to into the wind. She had assured the clan that it was an isolated incident, exacted by a dragon with a grudge against their mother, and that there was no reason to be afraid. Kipling wasn't so sure, however. He had seen the uneasy twitch of Fenn's frills as she spoke. There was more she wasn't letting on.
Most of the clan had returned indoors after the ceremony. The rain had only further driven everyone indoors. Some dragons had grumbled it was too early in the year for rain, Wavecrest was ages away.
Kipling sat in silence with Rori and Luster. He was sure his friends also felt the heaviness at the thought of the jokes they had cracked just the day before. It appeared Sullene had been right, and he had been taken his destiny too lightly.
"So, what are we going to do?" Rori asked, looking to Kipling for direction.
"You can't be serious." Luster snorted, but he too lacked the confident posture he usually held.
"I don't know. We don't have much to go on. We're at a dead end." Kipling shrugged. "But we have to do something."
The three sat in silence for a time, staring at their empty glasses on the wooden table.
"So, let's look at what we have." Rori began again. "We know danger is coming, danger no one else know about. We know we need help from outside, and we know that there once existed moon warriors, and that they are somehow connected to all of this."
"But moon warriors are extinct." Luster reminded her.
"Yes, but maybe our answer is in shadow?" Rori sighed. "I don't know."
"It's all we've got." Kipling pointed out.
"What? Are you suggesting we haul ourselves all the way across Sornieth for something that doesn't exist anymore? You guys are crazy." Luster shook his head.
"What if we need to think outside the box." Kipling asked. "I mean, the story Merry told during the Jamboree, he told me no one knew what happened to Prince Ty and Eclipse. Maybe there are answers out there somewhere. What if they are still out there, wandering Sornieth, lost? I mean, if there was that much prejudice against moon warriors, they wouldn't exactly advertise it, would they?"
"What are you saying?" Rori perked up.
"I'm saying that Sacredscream said Eclipse was executed, but what if Merry's side of the story was right and she escaped? What if the lynching was just a lie told to discourage any future moon warriors." Kipling explained. "It's a long shot, but it's a starting point."
"So, how do you expect we are going to find out the truth? This was ages ago." Luster asked. "I mean, I'm all in, I'm just trying to be the realist here."
"Right, because everything else about you is so real." Rori giggled.
"There must be answers somewhere." Kipling insisted.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't help but overhear-" A coatl interrupted. His face was shrouded and ghostly hands reached out from his shoulderblades. "You're looking for moon warriors?"
If Kipling hadn't recognized him as Voiken, he was sure he would have found this sudden appearance terrifying. As it were, Voiken was one of the few dragons of Windkeep Tower he didn't know very well. He had heard about him from his twin sister, Veilwing, but the siblings had apparently fallen out over something, splitting their business. Voiken claimed to see the past; Veilwing claimed to see the future.
"Do you know anything about moon warriors?" Kipling asked excitedly.
"Not much, but I can see you are connected to them." Voiken explained. "It's fuzzy, like it's in the past, but not yet a part of your past."
"What does that mean?" Kipling asked.
"Look, you're trying to save the clan right? Something like that? I'm sorry, but I couldn't help but overhear your conversation and-" Voiken trailed off, as though unable to find the words. Tears were beginning to form in his eyes. "The hatchlings- they were my grandchildren. If a greater danger is coming you have to prevent more tragedies like these."
Kipling handed the coatl a napkin as tears began to drip from behind his veil.
"My brother-in-law, Quinlann, has been doing some experimentation around time travel. I don't know how successful he has been, we haven't spoken in over two years, but if you need something in the past, it might be your answer." Voiken sniffed. "Sorry, it's been an emotional day."
"Do you want us to somehow save your grandchildren in the process? What do you want out of this?' Luster asked. Rori and Kiplin stared at him wide-eyed. "What? Most things don't come without a price! Especially not with his wife."
"Vaughan doesn't know I'm doing this. She wants nothing to do with my sister or her husband." Voiken reassured. "She'd offer to bring them back, of course, but I know better than anyone that the past shouldn't change unless it can be helped. I'm only offering this to you because I can see traces of you in the past, which means something in history is dependent on you going back."
"So you want us to find Quinnlan? He'll really help us to time travel?" Kipling asked.
"Oh Windsinger no." Voiken rolled his eyes. "Quinnlan is far more sensible than that. His time travel practices are purely theoretical, he is far too cautious to actually go back in time. No, if you want to do this you are going to have to find some way to do this without him knowing."
"You mean stealing?" Rori balked. "No thank you."
"Oh come on, what's wrong with a bit of adventure?" Luster asked, suddenly interested. "Where is this time travel stuff?"
"Veilwing and Quinnlan have a series of underground tunnels and chambers that make up their secret workshops. There is an entrance at the cliffs, just look for a rock with a fancy V carved into it, and you'll be at the entrance." Voiken explained. "And as for the stealing, sometimes you cannot remain entirely morally sound when it comes to doing to right thing. I know it sounds backwards, but trust me on this one."
"I don't know..." Rori's gaze darted around the room in a frenzy.
"Come on Rori, I don't like it any more than you do, but what choice do we have? It's the only lead we've got and I am not letting anyone else get hurt in this clan. Do you want more days like today? Days where families are mourning their children and the entire clan is wondering how any dragon can do such a thing? This is only the beginning of something, I can feel it in my bones. I'm not going to stand by and let my family get hurt!"
"I'm in. How many dragons can say they actually went back in time?" Luster smirked. "It sounds like the adventure of a lifetime and you couldn't keep me out if you tried."
"If it's for the clan, I guess we'll have to do it then." Rori conceded. Her face broke out into a smile. "Besides, I'm not letting you go without me."
"There it is then." Kipling nodded, turning to Voiken. "We'll do it. What can we do to thank you?"
"No thanks needed. Just don't let anyone else die." Voiken said.
"Oh well, no pressure then." Kipling laughed nervously. "We'll do our best."
@CleverDual @Alwaid @zzzhorses @Amezrou @ScrivenerRook @Kizzan @clarax @lilastar @tigressRising @Disillusionist @Aetherstorm @rainphee @RiaFire11 @Tirtouga678
You know, when I started this chapter, I hadn't planned on bringing in Voiken but the trio just weren't reaching the whole time travel conclusion on their own, and any excuse to bring in dragons who don't usually make an appearance for a chapter or two is very satisfying.
If I had had time to write yesterday, I was planning on writing a chapter from the POV of the clan familiars but unfortunately yesterday was a pretty busy day.
