"Empress Nightshade, Emperor Platinum, I am Tempest. I come by a sight that is not just physical. I foresaw your plight and came as quickly as I could. Visionaire is a strong one, but their Oracle, as they call her, will learn to fear me. I will poison her vision and wreck her sight, as well as the others. The five of them have never had to contend with an ancient one before. For only we can be Augurs."

"It is good to have one such as you with us," Empress Nightshade state with a sly grin. "You came at the most opportunistic time."

"The attack was not random," Tempest replied. "It was I who alerted Visionaire to my coming arrival."

With the initial coup settled, without bloodshed, Tempest began to prepare to even the playing field so the Banescales could seize control.

Nightshade and Platinum looked at the situation. After only a few days, their coup has gotten little traction. The power and prestige of the Guardian Dragons of Katabaino Dunatos Katharos Lair was greater than it appeared it would ever be. The Guardian Dragon’s honor and their steadfast holding to their charge was amazing. Without something else, they simply would never show that they had what it took to be the better leader of the lair. Thankfully, what they needed was right in front of them.

“I will need time to prepare, but I can do what needs to be done,” Tempest stated. “I know how to change the battle. The key is Visionaire. They have a big reliance on her. Give me time, and I will open the door for you to cruise right in and take control. For now, make peace, make nice, and hold on to the Lair's Ethos. You took that vow, but I never did."

Tempest stood up and launched, zipping out of the cave and into the night.
______________________________________________________

Tempest had recruited two Coatls, BulukChabtan of the Light and Valador of the Lightning, but now he had been using the Beyond to search the whole land for a Banescale worthy of the calling of the Beyond. He had tracked down a very special Banescale. He had not expected to find one such as he. It was an old feeling like his, but cold to the touch.

Tempest was currently in the Starwood Strand, overlooking the Mighty Lair of Denholm. Inside sat a nameless Banescale struggling to understand the world. He was a gorgeous Beige Marble male with Pink Trimmings. It was a very fitting color scheme for the Starfall Isles. Anywhere that dragon would go, he would bring envy.

As Tempest sat in the moonlight among the blooming trees, he understood why many dragons unlocked their genius in these woods, and why many lost themselves in the dangers. He could see the dangers before they came, and the Beyond gave him abilities to fight and counter them. He was an ancient Augur granted immense power. And so was this Banescale.

With proper guidance, this Ice Banescale could ascent to a new plane of existence. Being lost for so long mean that the special connections the eggs would have had laid dormant, and were passed onto a child of the first resurrected generation. The physical manifestation was the multiple eyes.

Most dragons had to learn to block the other eyes out of their vision, learning to chose which ones they used to see. But Tempest knew how to use all of his and train other Banescales to do the same.

Tempest took a deep breath in and closed all of his eyes. He smelled the flowers blooming and felt the arcane energy all around him. But that was not his goal. He focused inward and inverse, slipping into the Beyond.

When he opened his eyes, the Starwood Strand was a lot younger than it was now. He had bridged over and was searching the old records for the name of the Banescale he was searching for. Tempest launched and glided down to the forest's floor.

He pulled back the bark on a tree. Beneath it was the name Dendrite. It didn't feel right. He moved to the next one and ripped open the bark to find the name Iceneddle. To the next tree he went, and the next, finding several more names; Graupel, Glacier, Snowburn, Snowcrystal, and Kildara. None of those was right.

They were all names of powerful dragons connected to the void, past, present, or future, but they were not this Banescale's name. Tempest took off, looking for the oldest tree in the area. He found on that suited his requirements and landed. Beneath the bark was the name "Rime."

Rime, the frozen water droplets on a snowflake that had collided with it and then stayed on the ice crystal. Bumps on the flake just like the multiple eyes of the Banescale. That was his name. And it was an old, strong name. A name of good standing and power.

Tempest flew back to his original perch and landed on the precariously small branch. The tree swayed under his weight, but it didn't last as he pulled himself out of the void to find himself resting on the once again ancient tree that was nearly unmovable.

Rime was his name. Rime was the Banescale the lair of Katabaino Dunatos Katharos needed. Rime would be the tipping point for control of the Lair.

Tempest still had to convince Rime to join him. That would require the Beyond again. It was night, making the contact much easier. Tempest settled in again and slipped into the Beyond. Unlike before, he was searching through the dreams of the dragons in the nearby area. It was a lot to sort through.The other lairs in the area made it difficult to key in on Denholm.

Tempest found his dreams and stepped into them. His interruption destroyed whatever had been happening, but that didn't matter.

"I am Tempest, a Banescale gifted with the ancient gift of traveling to the Beyond. There is a lair in need of your skills, for you are too gifted with that ancient power. You are an Augur like me. It is why you have many eyes. Dream manipulation is only one of the many things you can learn to do. I will teach you if you can find me.

"But to find me, you first need a name. I have searched the ancient records, and present the name Rime to you. Seize it for yourself and find me. I won't make you search all the way to the Sunbeam Ruins were I come from, but you will need to use the Beyond to find me in the Starfall Isles.Trust you instinct, listed to the whispers, and let them guide you.

"That is your challenge. How you choose will prove what type of dragon you truly are. I didn't search you out without reason. The Banescales of the Lair I am with need to gain control, for it is our right as the elder, more capable race."

Tempest stepped back out of the dream. It was a powerful message to leave. He took off, heading west to the great southern Crystalspine Reach Mountain spike beside the Starwood Strand. There he would wait for Rime.