Tillandsia

Tillandsia was found wandering along a bayou with no memory of her past, no markings on her hide, nor any idea of how she arrived in the domain of Clan Acadie. Although she seemed completely untrained, she was somehow an extremely competent fighter.

She is happy to have found a home in Morgana and Merlin's lair, and has accepted the roles of the clan's War General and battle trainer of the clan's young and of those passing through her territory to join the Shadowbinder's service. She occasionally finds abandoned eggs while training recruits.

One day while patrolling the clan's territory, she came across a strange, solid black insectoid dragon with no distinguishing features leading a band of 13 hatchlings that were similar to the insectoid stranger, but not completely. She watched, unnoticed, the stranger take the hatchlings to a clearing in the woods and kill one of them. Tillandsia could not stand to watch such a thing take place. She fought the stranger and killed it. She took the survivors back to the lair, where the well-travelled Irulan determined that they were rejects from a dangerous group called the Hivemind. The 12 stolen hatchlings were dubbed the Hivemind Twelve.


Centuries passed, and Tillandsia fulfilled her duties perfectly and almost without question or hesitation, with one exception. She kept the Clan safe, trained thousands of recruits for the Shadowbinder's service, and rescued many eggs and hatchlings on her patrols.

She only failed to follow orders once. When the strange Tundra appeared at the edge of the Clan's territory, Tillandsia knew immediately that there was something off about her. When she requested to see the Queen, Tillandsia delivered her to the throne room on the off-chance that the Tundra was actually injured. Since she did not trust the Tundra, she guarded the outside of the doors personally after the others attending the Queen were dismissed. She left the door open a small crack so that she could hear in case the Queen needed assistance. It was her job to ensure the safety of the clan, and that included the monarch.

Although she heard everything said in the throne room that day, she never breathed a word of it. Sharing such knowledge would only break apart the Clan she'd spent a lifetime defending, and no good could possible come from sharing such knowledge. Until now.


"My Queen," Tillandsia said evenly as she approached the Queen's throne, bowing deeply.

"Tillandsia, how goes the war effort?" the Queen replied, just as evenly.

Rising, the grizzled general spoke quietly, "I have words that are for your ears alone, your majesty. May we speak in private?"

"At once. Everyone, leave us, please," the Queen declared, her word instantly obeyed.

After the others left, Tillandsia opened the doors to the throne room to make certain that no one was guarding them the same way she had all those years ago. Satisfied that there was not a soul nearby, the General shut the doors tightly and returned to the foot of the throne.

"Tillandsia, what was that all about?" the Queen asked, voice still even, and no hint of emotion betrayed in her crest.

"My Queen, I will explain. But first, I bring dire news. My scouts spotted a new recruit that joined the ranks of the enemy. An ancient Light dragon, of such power that it radiates from his eyes. He is nearly as old as the Coatls, and every day gains power to rival the Imperials.

"I see. Do you have any suggestions on how to combat this great threat? When this is over, we shall make the Coatls and Imperials leave. Their neutrality is unacceptable. They must go when we no longer need them to protect the territory from intruders while we deal with the accursed Veilspun."

Keeping her thoughts on the Coatls and Imperials to herself, Tillandsia only replied, "It is time to tell him, your Majesty. Only with your combined powers can you hope to defeat this Veilspun abomination."

Tillandsia knew what she just said could very well mean her death. It was treason to defy the orders of the Queen, and she just admitted aloud to knowing the Queen's greatest secret, which could only have been obtained by disobeying a direct order from her monarch.

The Queen showed emotion for the first time. Her eyes narrowed and her crest flattened to her head as she hissed, "How dare you!" Her eyes briefly flicked to the tightly closed doors, giving the only indication that she knew exactly how Tillandsia obtained such knowledge.

Tillandsia bowed, baring the back of her neck to her Queen. "I understand what I did was treason, your majesty, but I was worried for your safety. I only ask that you delay in dealing with me until the Veilspun scourge is eradicated. This was the only time I ever disobeyed you. I have never lied to you, and you know this."

Tillandsia remained prostrate, waiting for the Queen to either strike off her head or tell her to rise. Although she was prepared to accept her punishment, she was relieved when the Queen chose the latter.

"Arise, Tillandsia, and bring Merlin to this chamber. Trust me when I say that I will deal with you when this war is over." As the Queen spoke, her words devolved from speaking normally to a deadly hiss that was barely understandable. As Tillandsia rose and turned to leave, she could see that the Queen's eyes were still narrowed and her crest clamped tight in unimaginable fury.

Tillandsia sighed after she left the throne room. This may very well spell the end of her life, but she had no regrets. She did, as she always had done, everything she could to keep the Clan safe.