Orifade

Hailing from the clan LunasDreamv2, Orifade is the first child of Arkana and Determination, leaders of said clan whose alliance is, while fairly useless, highly entertaining. She's come here after Arkana and Determination both collectively decided to send her here for training under Godspeed, after a series of disasters they could certainly have avoided had Orifade not been there.


Orifade was also their gifted messenger, flying at terrifying speeds while protecting the mail she carried. Sentimental in nature, she never goes anywhere without her trusty scarf and messenger bag, the first apparel items she ever donned. Now, she can be seen in Goldenstorm lazing around eating her huge stash of Rubyhiss' cookies she brought over (much to the delight of Nightwing's birds), helping out Godspeed with her letter delivery, and sometimes playing chase with Deathseed, whom she has found to be a good opponent. On Saturdays, she also enjoys beating up other dragons with pillows in the Pillow games, in which her strategy is so haphazard and reckless I'm surprised she's won at all.




It had been 2 years. 2 years of denial, grief, and, finally, acceptance. 2 years have passed, and 2 years have finally come to a close.

The barrier was breaking.

It was first seen cracking as Godspeed flew by the Isles, her wings enveloped in the glowing green wind. The runes were flickering, and, when some fizzled out, crumbled into rosy cinders before exposing a blinding light underneath.

“If that isn’t something serious, I don’t know what is.”

The imperial heaved her leather flaps and launched herself at breakneck speeds across the ocean. Past the glittering south sea, over the Frigid Floes, across the Snowsquall Tundra, through the Cloudscrape Crags, and finally to the Fortress of Ends. She took a right, tore through the clouds, and broke into the frosty mist.

“Stupid snowflakes.”

She made it to the other side and propelled past the clan’s glowing blue dome, her etched passcode glowing faintly on her crystalline skin.

Goldenstorm.

As she spiraled down, Godspeed expertly removed the satchel around her arm. Taking a left, she unloaded the treasure at Amun’s doorstep, before flying to a stop in front of the royal hall’s doors. Ezo and Mulan stood on either side. As the imperial landed, Ezo raised an eyebrow. Godspeed’s arrival was surprising, but certainly not unwelcome.

“You’re back early.”

Godspeed planted her wings in the snow, taking a second to catch her breath.

“Yeah. There isn’t that much traffic at 5 in the morning. Almost ran into a pack of spirals though. Hard to spot them when I’m flying at mach speeds. Got the gems back though. Status knows what she’s doing.” The imperial then paused and shook her head, adjusting both her Whirlwind Crown and her train of thought. “Listen. I need to speak with the Stormtalon or Fireheart. Both would be preferred. It’s urgent.”

The couple glanced at each other, before turning back to the messenger.

“The queen is preparing to go to the Bamboo Falls. Interrupting her right now would not be wise.” Mulan shifted her weight. “What seems to be the problem?”

“I don’t know if it’s a problem or not. For all, I know it could be something fantastic. I honestly have no idea, Diana is way more qualified for this than I am. She would really-”

Mulan chuckled.

“Cut to the point, Godspeed.”

“Remember the pink barrier thing? The one that appeared around the dreamer clan 2 years ago? Yeah. It’s uh. It’s breaking now.”

The guards’ eyes widened. After exchanging an invisible conversation with his mate, Ezo quickly spun around and rapped his wing on the wooden door.


“The barrier is breaking?”

Deathseed leaped off the branch, with Venomstrike following close behind. The snow fell softly onto the leaves below, coating them in a fine white haze. Aether waited down below as her peacock firebird pecked at Mya, Venomstrike’s psywurm. The sound of clicking resounded nearby, no doubt being Deathseed’s coatl-sized corpse cleaner scuttling about beneath the undergrowth. The smell of crisp forest air filled the skydancer’s lungs as she silently handed the letter to the mirror.

The mirror placed the parchment on the ground and scanned it, his four emerald eyes darting from line to line. His wife perched on his shoulder, occasionally prodding at it with her staff. Aside from the flapping of wings, the chirping of birds, and the fae’s tapping, the Blood Tundra was silent. Aether looked around. Badnews may be hunting with Theta right now, while Tremayne and Seaglass were most likely up to their wizardly shenanigans. Fangorn was off to who knows where. That nocturne always creeped her out, even more than Deathseed. At least the mirror was friendly when you got to know him, in his own, feral sort of way. Fangorn on the other hand, mainly just stared from afar and kept to himself.

“It’s true! What a wonderful surprise!”

Despite the fae’s lack of expression in her voice, Venomstrike was ecstatic, with her excitement literally vibrating off the fans on her head. She readjusted her witch hat and darted over to her psywurm, who, as all psywurms do, attempted to wiggle out of her grasp.

Deathseed, on the other hand, seemed to falter. Unlike the fae, he processed the news quietly, before leaping back up the tree.

“Orifade will be so excited! I’ll go tell her right away!”

In a flash, the fae disappeared into the foliage. Aether sighed and wrapped up the parchment. She looked back up to the mirror. He seemed… off. Annoyed? Disappointed?

Realization quickly dawned on her. She didn’t need to feel his emotions. She knew them well enough.

He was grieving.

Mirrors are family dragons, which only strengthed their famous pack dynamic. The three (occasionally four, if Venomstrike transformed herself into one) mirrors hunted as a team. Deathseed, Orifade, Tremayne. Felicity occasionally joined the group, though she was still learning how to hunt. The family in the woods, and, with the rest of the tribe, the guardians of the Blood Tundra.

Seeing her leave would be the equivalent of a father sending his daughter away. Aether knew that he was happy for her, but with his joy came an even greater sense of loss.

“I’m so sorry Deathseed.”

The mirror looked down at the skydancer. He rose expressionless, attempting to mask his emotions in a hard exterior.

“She’s heading back to her home. Her true home. She will be free.”

Seemingly on cue, Orifade leaped out from the trees, followed by Venomstrike who could barely keep pace.

“Aether, you better not be joking right now.”

The skydancer glanced over to the letter. The mirror, following her gaze, pounced on parchment. She quickly scanned its contents as tears trickled down her face. The mirror turned to Venomstrike, who nodded eccentrically. Above them, Deathseed simply smiled.

Sensing her cue to leave, the skydancer swept up her peacock firebird into her claws.

“Meet at the barrier as soon as possible. It could break any second now.”

The dragon unfurled her wings, and in one stroke, ascended into the winter skies above.


“The caster is dead.”

Diana read the white runes written upon the barrier’s surface. Stormtalon, with her royal guard and fellow clanmates, watched as the coatl examined the glowing surface. Word had spread quickly across the clan, and in little more than 3 hours, a portion of the clan had assembled at the barrier’s base. The magical shield let out a loud hum in front of the large gathering. Gigantic gleaming crystals jutted out of the ground towards the spectacle, almost as if they wanted to grasp the arcane cylinder. However, the clan knew that they were generated after the elemental outburst that some called the “Bounty of the Elements.”

The queen tilted her head.

“Can you tell what it possibly could have been?”

“There’s a high chance that it was deliberate. If it wasn’t, it was a very unfortunate coincidence. A spell of this capacity would require the continuous concentration of a very powerful mage. Whoever it was, they’re dead now.” She gestured to the violent bursts of light in the field. “If it was dispelled the barrier would simply have vanished. As for the motive, I have no idea. Vengeance? Defense? Protection? As of now, we can’t say for sure.”

A cracking sound filled their ears as a new white streak snaked its way across the pink surface. An explosion followed, and a new burst of light forth from the gaping orifice.

“Whoever created this time stop was really determined.”

A new gap appeared on the wall. However, this time, the gap’s lines jittered towards another opening. Large, spiral-sized beams quickly encircled the entire structure, surrounding the barrier in a white web of energy that wanted to be set free.

Any minute now.

“You’re absolutely certain that it’s safe to stand this close?”

Diana turned around to face a scared Pantheon. The pearlcatcher fidgeted with his pearl-turned-comet in his hand, his brow furrowed and eyes widened.

The coatl chuckled.

“Scared of a little light?”

The humming suddenly grew louder, and, in an instant, the barrier exploded.


“Do you think she’ll be alright?”

Arkana gazed from afar as she watched her daughter fly behind the much larger imperial. The two dragons soon disappeared into the horizon, two dots fading out into a sea of blue.

“She’ll be alright. Godspeed on the other hand, oh, she’s in for a wild ride.” Determination snickered and nudged his mate. “And now… ah.”

The monarchs turned around to face the chaos within the castle. First off, the wall was on fire. The portrait wasn’t a portrait anymore. How on earth did the chandelier change color? In the middle of the chaos, Polaris attempting to dictate the cleanup activities. Tesona attempted to fix the door, but accidentally snapped it in half. Rubyhiss flapped around the room, trying to keep the blaze from spreading. Did no one think to bring in a bucket of water?

Determination winced.

“I’ll go see if I can find Elma.”

In a flash, the mirror had leaped off the balcony. The guardian blinked, wiped her face, and got to work.

Then, the daze hit.

A sharp pain jolted through her head. Her body gave way, and, when she opened her eyes, she found herself on the floor. She felt something slam on top of her. Rubyhiss rolled off Arkana’s back, and slowly gained composure. Polaris staggered to her feet, then, seeing Arkana’s state, hastily rushed over.

“My queen, are you alright?”

Arkana winced. The pain was gone now, and her vision was clear again.

“I- I think so. Is everyone alright?”

The coatl helped Rubyhiss to her feet, while still keeping her eye on the queen.

“Well, Tesona fell on what was left of the door. It’s in splinters now. I’ll check downstairs to see if everything is alright.”

The coal dashed out of the room. At the same time, Arkana rushed over to the balustrades and peered over the edge. Everyone below was getting to their feet. Apart from the fact that there was now a broken fountain with a Senwith lying in it, everything seemed to be getting back to normal. She raised her eyes to scour the other parts of the castle, then took a step back in shock.

What on earth?

The world had changed around them. Outside the clan, giant crystal monoliths shot out of the ground. The once-green plains now bloomed with strange purple flowers, with each patch emitting a faint pink glow. She squinted. Was that mountain there before?

“MOOOOOOOOOM!”

Then, out of nowhere, a green shape slammed into her, almost toppling her massive form. Arkana quickly shook off the figure, and refocused her vision. Out of instinct, her bident shot out of its holdings, a massive staff with two shining blades. The queen spun around and pointed her weapon towards her attacker in a battle stance.

Orifade?

The bident fell. Was she- No, she was definitely bigger. Her head fins were more prominent now, fanning out in a glimmering display. Her features were more defined now, and she was no longer the young, angsty teenage pup that her mother knew. And her outfit too, it was different. Were those lanterns?

Wait. No.

She wasn’t bigger. She was older.

Her daughter latched onto her neck, and brought her down to the ground. She was almost certainly stronger as well.

“I was so worried about you. I thought we lost you forever.” Orifade laughed. Were those tears? “Diana reassured us that you all would be alright, but I had no idea. I’m a good messenger now mom, Godspeed taught me all of her tips!”

Arkana closed her eyes. What was going on?

“Slow down, Orifade. Did you eat something?” She blinked. “Did I eat something? You just left 30 minutes ago!”

The fins on Orifade’s head drooped.

“30 minutes?”

Something then caught her gaze. Orifade glanced past her mother, focusing on the room behind her. The wall was still on fire, the portrait was still not a portrait, and the chandelure… oh mom would not want to know what she took from Glycol.

Oh. So that’s what the time stop did.

Orifade turned back to her mother, who was still confused as ever.

“Mom. There’s a lot I need to explain.”

Arkana stared at her daughter. Nope, she was definitely not dreaming. Orifade was definitely older. Did she drink something funny?

“Is this one of Venomstrike’s pranks?”

“Venomstrike- No, Venomstrike did nothing. She would never. Deathseed and her have been taking care of me. They’re actually really good parents, in their own, weird sort of way.”

“Taking care of you?”

“Yes. They’ve been taking care of me for 2 years.”