Hyden

Sometimes, he remebered.
Sometimes, he yearned.
Not for his long lost family and not for his former 'friends', deceitful creatures, traitors.
Not even for his former God who seemed to have abandoned him (but did he have the right to fret over this, after he had left the territorries of the Tidelord without ever looking back?)
No, the only thing his body and soul were longing for was the feeling of water running down his scales, having to hold your breath while you let the darkness of the currents suck you deeper and deeper, the vast and yet lively endlessness of the ocean. The taste of salt, the sound of waves crushing onto the rough shore, and the softer sound of waterdrops, dripping from your wings after a long swim... yes, the dripping sound. Dripping water, dripping blood, all the same.
Hyden's expression grew darker as this unwelcomed part of his memory started to flood those brighter and peaceful times he had been trying to recall.

He had known it from the very beginning- that he was destined to live a watchful life, to mind every step he would do. They had always been after him, lingering in the shadows and darker parts of the sea- no monsters, no beastclan. His own people, the members of his flight- greedy for power and unable to strive for it on their own, they had decided to strip him off of his power instead. And in their lack of creativity, all they had been able to come up with had been the plan to finish him for good, to kill him off.
Poison on his plate, open attempts of assassination, teeth around his neck- eventually, Hyden had begun to realize that his options were quite limited. To stay and fight, which would have meant his eventual death for sure, or to flee and live... so he might, one day, return with greater strength and knowledge, maybe even allies, to take his revenge.

But for now, that day seemed to be in the far future. For now, he didn't want to go back, not even to pay back those scars on his throat. For now, he was satisfied with what he had here- in his new Clan, his new Flight. And even though he couldn't explore the deepest abyss anymore, he had never been closer to the rainy clouds than at this place, his new home.
Closing his eyes, he tried to recall that fateful day.

Exhausted from his escape, he had eventually landed on unknown grounds, far enough away from the Tidelord's realm so he couldn't even see the ocean's surface anymore. Farer away than he had ever been.
He had been fretting, (he had been lost) fightning down the spark of panic that had been starting to emerge from deep within his chest from the moment on when he had decided to leave. There was no plan, no goal- just the wish, the need, to get away and get away fast. Before they noticed his absence, before they came after him... or before he could change his mind, return and challenge his brothers and sisters, before he could sink his claws and jaws into their skins to show his will to fight- and therefore, go down. With glory and pride, of course, but still, what good would those do when he was dead?

"You seem deep in thoughts."
Hyden flinched, then turned his neck to look at the newcomer. Slowly, the massive figure of Saphyra, leader of his new Clan, emerged from the dusty fog. She would never cease to impress him- not because of her size or the graceful, strong movements of her limbs. Not because of her voice that seemed to run through the veins of anyone who listened to it. It was because of her eyes- they seemed to hold a lot more memories than what should have been possible. If anything was an indicator of her relation to the Arcanist, his new Deity, then it was the glance of those eyes.
"I was just dwelling on old memories."
His accent still gave away his origins. And that was fine- Hyden would never try to change that, to bend himself to something he was not. He was glad to live this new life, but he was not planning on abnegating his former life.
"The day we met?"
Sometimes, it was like she could read minds. Hyden just nodded shortly, then looked back into the skies.
"You took me with you, just like that."
"You seemed like you would die from exhaustion otherwise."
"I could have been a spy, you know?"
"Yes, if you had been a spy, I would have known."
"Even you aren't immune to every kind of deception and foul game."
"That is why I have you, isn't it?"

True enough. Saphyra's Clan had been strong when he had arrived- strong, but raw. Lacking the finesse of negotiation, the experience of a world in the tiers of politics and economics. They had been strong, but at the verge of becoming a sruggling clan, while the world was changing around them way too fast. He had arrived just in the right moment- he, a dragon who was more than used to intrigues all around him, to recognizing and judging trickeries.
It had been a mere deal: His help, his skills and knowledge for their protection and hospitality.
A deal which soon had become redundant. No contracts were needed between true Clanmates, and he had become one of them rather quickly.
A Clan he hadn't been born to, but one he had chosen... maybe this was what he had been looking for all his previous life.