New Flames

Epilogue

Zander's tail thrashed through the water as he tracked his time, counting the seconds as he quickly swam his route.

The ocean water was cold despite it being a breeze-less evening, but Zander didn't care. He reached his destination, halting himself with his wings behind a bank of seaweed, and digging his claws into the sand below him.

The Deep Palace was a few wing-strokes from him, in all of its alleged glory and light. Dragons were gathered around it, going about their day, and guards patrolled the entrance and surrounding area. Below it, the gem fisher's trench cut the ocean floor and extended for many wingspans downwards. Zander had been there too many times, whether for probation or fun and had learned the hard way why no SeaWing had ever settled so deep.

He shook himself, as memories of giant squids and sapphire dust left his mind.

"I made it in 7 minutes and 43 seconds. I can make it 6 if I catch the nightly drift," he thought, planning the route in his head, "I'll let them know that it can indeed be done."

Zander didn't want to think about the nitty-gritty of the plans too much, but he knew a certain someone would be more than happy to know about them. And right now, he just couldn't wait to see that smile again.

A smile that made him believe he could make a change.

He spread his wings and swam away from the seaweed, his dark blue scales melting into the darkness of the deep ocean water.

It wasn't a good idea to just stare at the palace for a long time. Dragons would get suspicious, and he'd already gotten in way too many fights with guards as a dragonet, fights that were frequently broken up by his parents and sister - minor nobles, and now, for all intents and purposes, outcasts. But Zander's thoughts spiralled back to another dragon. One who was instead his complete opposite, and who had never dared to stand between his claws and the world.

"Placoid would always wait, and then tell me to think straight. He'd side with the guards... with the rest of the world." He halted, as a small twinge of worry spread through him. "He'd tell me that this isn't worth the risk,"  he thought, then added, with a grimace, "Ha, like I'd listen! We really are like salt and sand, him and I."

Zander didn't admit it often or to anyone other than himself, but he did miss Placoid. He was the peace to his chaos. He missed how others thought they could communicate with just a look, while they shared messages in aquatic even on the surface. He remembered all the times he'd protected him and helped him become a braver dragon.

He also often wondered what he was doing, halfway across Pyrrhia.

In the SkyWing Kingdom.

He shuddered at the only thought of living amongst those bloodthirsty, mindless beasts of fire and death who had destroyed their home not too long ago - along with more than just that.

"I guess he has some courage, becoming a healer amongst killers. What did Batoid call those? Juxtapositions?" He thought, trying to remember his old language and poetry scrolls that his mother desperately loved.

And that she had probably died protecting. 

What a weird family he had. He was probably the only sane one out of all of them - despite what everyone else thought about him.

He was smart, brave, and ready to fight for this kingdom, no matter who stood in his way.

Suddenly, as the currents shifted, noticed movement from underneath him.