Vision

The Tundra was hatched from an elemental egg, which would normally mean the hatchling had been claimed by the deity of the egg's element. However, when his eyes first opened to the world, the Arcanist refused to accept him. He had been marked by the Plaguebringer, the deity said, and cast him away.

A small hatching cannot survive long on its own. Perhaps the Arcanist knew this and sent him out hoping he would perish quickly, save him the annoyance of seeing a Plague-marked dragon within his kingdom. Perhaps he wasn't thinking of it. Perhaps he simply did not care.

Regardless, the little Tundra was lucky enough to find safety quickly: a band of Dragons, outcast like himself for one reason or another, took him in, promising shelter for as long as he needed it. He grew up among them and was accepted despite his Plague-mark, although he took to wearing scarves and cloths to cover it. The small community gradually grew into a town, and while he was happy to see what it had become, he knew it was time to move on. Most of the dragons who had welcomed him in years ago had already left, trusting others to continue their work.

After he'd said goodbye to his friends who were staying behind, he traveled for miles across Sornieth, searching for others who had been marked by the Plaguebringer like himself. Eventually, he found his way to the Southern Icefields. He decided to just barely skirt the edge, to avoid being lost in the endless white snowdrifts. Despite this, however, he got lost in a snowstorm and ended up partway across the Reclaimer's Glacier. Half-frozen, he saw warm firelight coming from close by.

The light was coming from a large ice cave filled with dragons. As he stood at the entrance, wondering if he would be allowed to come in, a small blue Fae flew up to him. She introduced herself as Spirit and welcomed him to what she called her Sanctuary. It reminded the Tundra of the friends he'd left behind, and suddenly feeling homesick, he thanked the Fae for her kindness and joined the dragons in their talk. He felt this was somewhere he could stay; the dragons were kind, and the group was close, yet accepted him as easily as if he'd been there for years.

However, he still felt a little out of place among these dragons. Out of all of them, he was still the only one who was marked by the Plaguebringer. That is, until the day a blue Skydancer appeared at Sanctuary, scarred from long-ago battles and limping from a wound on her shoulder. Her eyes were a deep red, the sign of Plague. Spirit seemed to take special interest in her and immediately took her to her den, where she stayed for a long time. When they were finished, neither said a word about what had happened, which only served to pique the curiosity of the other dragons.

When she had healed, the Tundra began to form a close friendship with the Skydancer, whose name was Wryth. After a few weeks, she started to open up, telling him of where she had come from. She spoke of a group of dragons living in the Icewarden's domain who were loyal to the Plaguebringer. She had been their leader for a few glorious years. However, the group was warlike, almost constantly in a fight against some other group. In the most recent fight, she had been badly injured. Instead of staying to see if she could survive on her own, she had sought medical help from Sanctuary, though she knew she would not be able to return. The Skydancer knew her friend wished to find others like himself, and she told him that if he wished to go, she would come with him as close as she could. Finally, the Tundra decided it was time to move on again. He said goodbye to Spirit, then followed Wryth out into the clear blue sky.

She took him as close to the border as she dared before turning back. Before she left, she reminded him that he would always have a home at Sanctuary. She seemed to want to say more, but instead turned quickly away. "I hope to see you again," the Tundra called quietly. Wingbeats sounded in the sky, and he looked up to see a blue-and-green Skydancer coming towards him. She wore strange blue armor with grey highlights, and her eyes were red, like Wryth's. Behind her were two others, both with red eyes and the same kind of armor as the Skydancer's. She landed on the snow a few yards away, eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"What are you doing here, child of the Arcanist?"
"I'm here to join you." Before she could question this, he untied his scarf, letting it fall to the ground and revealing the Plaguebringer's mark.
The Skydancer nodded approvingly. "Very well then. You may stay with us for as long as you wish, if you are strong enough. Life with us will be hard, and you may want to give up sometimes, but so long as you fight by our sides, we will always have your back."
The Tundra nodded happily. "Thank you! I promise I won't let you down."
"You'd better not." The Skydancer smiled, indicating it was a joke. "Come with us and we'll get you settled."
"What's your name again?" The Tundra remembered Wryth speaking of the new leader, something to do with stars, or constellations...
"Andromeda. I was named for the stars in my wings," she explained. "Oh, that's right- I forgot to mention, as the leader of the Plaguelings, it's part of my role to give a name to each of the new recruits." She looked him over, then nodded decisively. "In honor of your Plague-mark, I name you... Vision."

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(Maybe) to be continued...