The Bright Future (2.0)

Detective Indigo

Fathom paced anxiously outside the palace, waiting for Clearsight and Darkstalker to finish their meeting with the royal advisors. Was the queen okay? Where was she? What was the cause for her meeting?

A familiar flash of purple caught his eye. Fathom whirled around to see—

Indigo.

And a NightWing.

Fathom blinked and shook his head, then opened his eyes and glanced back at what he had been previously looking at. 

Yep. Definitely a NightWing. A male one by the looks of it. He had smooth black scales and a lighter underbelly, like most other NightWings, but a purplish tint to his scales and unusually sharp amber eyes.

He and Indigo were observing him from a tower of the palace. Indigo's tail was curled around it for balance while her NightWing friend was flattened to the roof, evidently able to keep his stabilization easily.

Fathom closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It's not real, he told himself. Indigo flew away to the Sea Kingdom, she hates NightWings, and she hates me now, too. She is most definitely not watching me, sitting on a freaking palace with a weird NightWing.

He opened his eyes.

They were gone.

                                - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

"Are you sure he is under a spell?"

"OF COURSE I AM!"

"Moons, I'm sorry. Please calm down, I did not mean—"

"Look, I know Fathom, he's not like this."

"I am simply suggesting that perhaps he has always been this way, and after being introduced to a darker side of life, was drawn in by the luxury and security of having another animus friend."

A pause.

"Stop using big words," requested Indigo. She pressed her claws against her eyes, silently willing the tears not to spill. "I don't speak this 'formal NightWing' language."

Starstrike let out a snort. 

"I just..." Indigo let out a shuddering breath. "I thought he was better than this. I didn't expect him to make friends with an evil animus NightWing."

"Understood," said Starstrike patiently. "However, sometimes you deeply mistake personalities and you may or may not have been correct about him."

"Hmm," said Indigo, still not believing Starstrike. She flicked her tail, illuminating the glow scales and sending a purplish glow around the cave.

"At any rate, we can continue observing him," pointed out Starstrike. She curled her wings in close to her body and fell into one of her frequent silences.

Indigo sighed and turned to the roaring fire in the center of the cave. Starstrike was a kind dragon but she often zoned out and lost track of the conversation. 

When they had first met, she had seemed slow and stupid, but Indigo knew Starstrike had just been buying time and calculating Indigo's threat level. Now, the NightWing had agreed to help her get Fathom's head on straight as long as Indigo kept her company. She couldn't help feeling sorry for Starstrike, whose parents did not support the transition of genders (Starstrike had been male at birth). 

"So," said Starstrike, suddenly lapsing out of her silence. "What do you think was enchanted again?"

"The goblet," answered Indigo immediately. "I could tell something was weird about it."

"You touched it?"

"No, but I think that if I did, I would feel that weird tingly feeling that animus items have."

"That is an excellent theory," said Starstrike. She breathed a spurt of flame to keep the fire going. "Why don't we test that? We need to get that goblet."

"Yes!" Exclaimed Indigo. She leaped to her feet, newfound excitement seizing her. "We can get the goblet and hopefully other animus items—because, um, clues! That's how things work in all the scrolls, there are clues to things!"

Starstrike gave a half smile and nodded. "Indeed. So, Detective Indigo is on the case?"

Indigo grinned. "Detective Indigo, I like that."

A/N: update I guess? Sorry it took so long, enjoy!