Note: It's a long one

Dedicated to Kate Luna:
Who always listened to my stories

~~~Ashton~~~

Ashton flew as fast as his feathered wings would take him. If Notch sent him down here for something important, then killing this Ein fellow was most likely the answer. The sun already set, and when Ashton flew into the town of New Growler he was surprised to see that no one attacked him, or saw him. Which seemed strange because his feathers glittered in the moonlight.

However, he didn't have much time to waste. He followed the faint smell of Cassie Rose back to a building which he assumed as her shop. Though the smell was faint, probably from her not being around it. Using one of his claws, Ashton opened the door gently and stuck his arm inside... barely. Like he was told, he ripped up the floorboards in the middle of the shop and pulled out a safe. Which he held in his claws, he didn't bother to open it for the gun might fall out of his grasp. So, quietly closing the door, Ashton took off into the air and returning south.

He flew up, and up, and up into the sky. He flew up so high that he went past the clouds and once he was up there he continued to fly south. Though he couldn't say there was a whole lot to see from up there, between all the clouds and the sent of his new human friends guiding him.

There was a reason he flew up so high, and that was because time seems to move faster above the clouds. You get to point A to point B quicker than if you were on the ground. He learned that from Sky Dragons, the only dragon tribe he could observe up close thanks to his secret ability to blend in with clouds. Still, Ashton liked observing the Sky dragons. They have a whole city in the clouds and everything! Yet one wrong move and they could accidentally cause a storm thanks to their ability to walk on clouds.

And yet even if it was night time and the Sky Dragons never leaving their homes in the sky. Ashton was still on high alert, he was carrying a very important thing that could change the world.

I wonder if I could shoot a gun, Ashton thought. Focus you bird brain! Dragons can't use guns, our talons are too big! It would be cool though, and terrifying. These giant creatures with guns. Oh no, I'm not becoming a Shadow Dragon, am I? I remember the other Aethers saying that if I think too many negative thoughts I become a Shadow Dragon, I don't want to lose my feathers! Happy thoughts, happy thoughts. Moon Moon is funny right? Strange but funny. Cassie is a bit too... murdery... for me. Dawson and Julia are nice though. I have a feeling those two are going to be great friends. If I knew anything about friends, Aethers don't have a lot of those. You do one thing wrong and the others won't let you forget about it! Hey, what's that?

He swooped down slightly below the clouds to get a better look at what was flying below him. It was a dragon indeed, about the same age as him or they looked to be that age. They had dark ruby red scales and an orange ridge on their back and yellow horns. "Ruby?" Ashton muttered softly.

When the dragon's ears perked up, Ashton flew back above the clouds to be hidden. And then zoomed away from what looked like to be Tao's friend. Clutching the safe in his talons, Ashton ignored the dragon and focused on flying. He was sent here for a reason, and he was about to find out why.

~~~Cassie~~~

When Ashton arrived everyone was already gathered in the throne room behind those giant curtains. Yin and Rocky already moved the wagon into a safe place where they could help with the getaway. Jesse and Jess were already in the wagon, and it seemed that Jesse was getting worse and worse.

Everyone was wearing either a tuxedo or some fancy outfit they managed to scrounge up from the guests since some of them (not surprisingly) were werewolves. Cassie was wearing her famous dark blue jumpsuit and her white pumpkin head was tucked snugly under her arm. Ah, her famous outfit, the one she strangled Sparklez with and backstabbed Lizzie... literally.

The Aether dragon put down the safe and everyone inched a little bit forward to see what was inside. Cassie just looked at the safe for a moment, she had a lot of personal items in there. She wished Winslow was here with her right now, but the pets had to stay in the wagon to avoid being eaten by dragons.

So, Cassie crouched down and stared at the safe. What was the code? Shit. She thought. At first, she tried her five favorite numbers, but when that failed she tried her least favorite numbers next. "Of course why would that work." She muttered to herself. "Guys give me some ideas, I forgot the safe combination."

The people around her groaned and moaned as if they were in agony. "Shut up, just spitball here!"

"Murder?"
"Fairies?"
"Dragons?"
"Werewolves?"
"Cat Gossip?"
"Gu-"

"Wait," Cassie said suddenly. "Cat gossip... cat... Winslow... Stampy... those two cats... I got it!" Cassie put in the five numbers and a clicking sound could be heard, and the safe opened.

"Awesome! What was the code?" Dan asked.

Cassie rolled her eyes. "If I told you then it wouldn't be much of a 'safe' anymore, would it?"

At first, Cassie had to clean out the pile of dust that sat in the middle of the safe, but after that there where only a few things in the actual safe. An old cat toy, a pumpkin seed, the gun (of course), an old notebook, a hatchet, and a picture of Cassie's family (all of which are long gone from this world).

She grabbed the gun and handed it to Lukas, which he handed to Petra who examined the gun. While Cassie grabbed the picture of her family. She was really young then, most likely ten and she was holding a little kitten in her hands and her parents standing right behind her. It felt strange looking at the picture, now that she was older, Cassie realized that she was almost the spitting image of her mother. Same red hair, same face, probably about the same hight if her mom was still alive. The one difference was the eyes, no one in Cassie's family had green eyes.

Except for Uncle Gary. He was weird. Cassie thought. Sorry mom, I guess I failed as a person. At least I still have Winslow.

It was then Cassie realized how old Winslow is, she was ten when he was born and now she's almost thirty. So Winslow was about twenty, which was strange for a cat to live that long but Cassie's glad to have a little trooped like Winslow. I guess I get the animal love from dad, he's the one who always gave me cat tips. A 6ft man with brown hair and a scruffy beard, he looked invincible but was attacked by wolves. At least he gave me the ability to take care of Winslow. Winslow was... is her best friend. She put the photo in her pocket, grabbed that hatchet, closed the safe, and put on the White Pumpkin.

~~~Lukas~~~

Lukas couldn't believe that they were so close to killing Ein, but he could never understand what he did wrong. The more he thought about the story Stacy told them the more it didn't add up. And he talked to the dragons and their opinions on the story, yet they said that Starfinder (the original pillar dragon) was Ein's best friend. So what happened? But as much as Lukas wanted to figure out what Ein did to deserve a banishment there was no time for that.

He was grateful that no dragon came in while they were hiding in there. Ignis was probably too busy pampering himself to do kingly duties today. What does he see in Ein? He wondered.

"So," said a deep voice, it was Cassie. "What's next?"

"Hm? Right! Petra, give Lizzie the gun." Lukas said.

"What!" Petra and Lizzie shouted at the same time.

"It's her gun, and you never held a handgun before." Lukas pointed out. "Lizzie, you're a good shot, right? It's up to you to shoot Ein in the heart with that silver bullet. He's one of the werewolves, you'll see him hanging around Ignis whos the dragon king."

"But I have no idea what they look like. How will I know who to shoot?" Lizzie asked.

"That's why I'm here," Petra said bluntly, "so you won't mess up and cause a world war."

Lizzie gave Petra a perplexed look. "Harsh much?"

"I think it's just the right amount of harsh." Stacy budded in.

"Before you cause a fight shouldn't we hear what's going down?" Romeo suggested.

"That's the smartest thing I've ever heard you say," Cassie admitted. It was hard to believe with that pumpkin on, it was even Cassie at all. Her voice changed and she doesn't sound like herself.

Lukas nodded at Cassie and started to explain the plan. "Back on track. Now that Ashton got the safe, and Cassie opened it we have about an hour until a big speech is made. At least that's what Gabriel told me. So we're all going to split up, try to find out what Ein is planning. Petra and Lizzie, you two are going to wait on one of the chandeliers until Romeo gives the signal. Remember to wait for five minutes before shooting, we need time to evacuate and the shot needs to be perfect. Moon Moon, Julia, and Dawson won't be allowed in the dining hall with the rest of us. So you three need to look out for Cassie or Ashton when it's time to go. The rest of us will be servants, except for Dan and Romeo who are in there werewolf forms. There are bound to be werewolves here. Everyone be careful."

~~~Julia~~~

"It sucks that we're not allowed in the big hall..." Moon Moon whimpered.

"Moon Moon, we would be eaten if we went in there!" Dawson pointed out.

Moon Moon crossed his arms like a little kid and made a pouty face. "True..."

Julia was glad she didn't have to spend the whole time prowling around the dining hall like a werewolf. And it's not that she didn't have anything against werewolves either! It was just a few like the Growler Town bunch (with the exception of Otto) and Romeo, Dan was alright though. As for Stacy, well she didn't really know her. But Stacy did flip out on her while she was a ghost she's on flipping thin ice.

The three decided to stay together and wandered throughout the corridors of the palace. Moon Moon wanted to stay around Cassie but Dawson started to have these nervous twitches when she saw Cassie in her 'White Pumpkin' form. What are you hiding Dawson? she thought.

It was surprising to see so many creatures in one place, satyrs played cheerful tunes and drank their worries away. They sang old folk tales about a satyr named  Grover and two humans he was sent to protect. Then they would sing another song about a sailor man named William Talor. Moon Moon loved to sing and dance, so upon meeting the creatures he was already humming the melody and dancing with one of the monkeys who also joined in on the fun. Julia and Dawson having to pull Moon Moon away from the fun-loving goats. 

One room was full of flowers and plants, strange considering the volcano. In the middle of the room was a koi pond, but the pond was insanely deep. And instead of fish hundreds of seahorses frolicked around and chased each other. One little seahorse stared back at the children (specifically Dawson) eying the pool, and it waved its little fin at them. There was another pool next to the pond, with a sea dragon in it. The sea dragon looked into the koi pond and smiled at the children, "He says hello." the dragon said with his old cracked voice. Dawson smiled into the pond at the seahorse and waved back at it. But the children had to move so left the dragon and the seahorses to their peace.

Unlike the other two Julia hasn't found any specific creature to fascinate over. Sure the satyrs were musical, and the seahorses were cute. But all that was left were the monkeys, who just swung on other dragons horns and threw bananas out the balconies at the dragons below.

Though eventually, the group ran back into Ashton in his 'Forest Dweller' form. So they chose to hang around him for awhile. And while Dawson and Moon Moon went out for a quick flight with him, Julia went back to the koi pond room and stared at the seahorses playing around. She could've sworn one of them gave her a dirty look. I don't understand why Dawson likes these creatures, Julia thought. Sure, their baby fins are adorable. But that's it. Nothing mind-blowing.

The old sea dragon in the next pool was fast asleep, the gills on his neck opening and closing slowly. And the seahorses ignored her looking into the pool after a while. So Julia decided to do something she doesn't like to do a lot and flipped back her hood.

There was nothing special underneath, just a girl looking in a pond with her reflection staring back at her. Her brown hair in a ponytail and her mysterious golden eyes shimmered in the water. She never understood why she had gold eyes, but now she would have to hide that fact, even more, thanks to Eins potions. Stacy briefly explained how to guess if you were under Eins control to the group, gold eyes seemed to be the only thing she could think of.

Thanks to Ein that fact would have to be kept to herself, and her amulet around her neck changed to a blue color, sadness. Which explained how she was feeling right now. A witch who can barely cast a single spell. Other magic users her age would be on transforming one thing into another, yet she was still stuck on levitation. It was embarrassing, which is why she moved to New Growler. She has to lie about everything to everyone.

I'm supposed to be a grand witch in the making, yet I'm stuck here looking in a koi pond. Maybe everyone was right... maybe I am a freak. These stupid gold eyes seem to agree with that fact. I can't cast a spell, I can't make a potion, I've been kidnapped about three times now, and she still doesn't... whatever. I'm not in the wizard city anymore or in that dumb magic school. I got Moon Moon and Ashton and... Dawson... I guess we all have secrets.

"You seem troubled, child." A tiny voice said.

"Whos there?" Julia asked, her amulet turning yellow.

"Don't worry, I'm a fairy!" The voice said in its cheerful way.

"You shouldn't be here, seahorses and fairies don't get along," Julia warned.

"Not that again... listen kiddo. You're more important than you think you are!"

"What do you mean? I'm just a failure... a failure of a witch."

"Stop." The voice said suddenly.

"Stop what?"

"Stop saying that about yourself! You aren't a failure! If anything, you're the exact opposite!" The voice encouraged.

"How am I the opposite? I'm useless in every way, at least by the council's standards..."

"What council?" The voice asked.

"The grand wizard council, they separate the powerful magic users from the weak ones. When I went they had one look at me and sent me away!" Julia explained.

"Why?" The fairy asked.

"I don't know. I guess they can just tell someone with strong magic and someone with weak magic. I don't know how it works, all I know is that no one wanted me around afterward."

The invisible fairy sighed, "I'm sorry kid, that seems rough. But nows not the time for moping! You're living history right now! And in a few months, you're going to see how important you really are! Good luck!"

"What do you mean? I don't understand! Hello? Fairy?" Julia asked.

Though no one answered, the elderly sea dragon wrinkled its snout like it was in the middle of a bad dream. So Julia left the koi pond room for the second time that day, and this time she never looked back.

~~~Yin~~~

Yin was so lucky to be in Ignis's palace with his uncle. Uncle Blizzard is so nice! He thought. And I'm lucky Rocky is here too! I hope Ein isn't mad at me... oh no... what if he knows? What if he knows I know about the plan to kill him! If he asks, I know nothing!

Yin sat next to his uncle Blizzard in the Dining Hall. Blizzard, or Ex-King Blizzard, was this big old dragon. He was over a hundred years old and one of the longest living dragon kings! Yin felt so proud to be his nephew. But getting involved with Ein was a whole different matter. Yin may seem stupid, but he's actually really smart and clever. How he entered Stacy's mind like that, was truly a work of art.

I'm just afraid he knows... I just did what Ein told me to do! I tried to make her more obedient! No matter, I failed. Ein probably already knows, good going, Yin. This is why Uncle Blizzard has 'mixed feelings' about me.

It's true, Blizzard was a complicated dragon. He's always neutral, which is why when something Yin does goes wrong, he can't say he was involved. Uncle was always a smart dragon... Yin watched quietly as some of his new human friends (disguised as servants) walked along the long tables, flagging down the actual dragon servants to bring food.

"What's wrong Yin? You haven't eaten anything yet, what's wrong my nephew?" Blizzard asked, putting a talon on Yin's shoulder.

"I'm fine Uncle Blizzard. I'm just not hungry." Yin fibbed.

"Well don't let that seal go to waste! These dragons have been kind enough to kill us some prey, and Ignis let us into his own palace! I know you don't like my decision on making Ignis the new king, but you must trust me, Yin. I know what I'm doing." Blizzard argued.

Yin didn't argue with his uncle and trusted his words. Uncle knows what he's doing, he always knows what he's doing. And so he took a bite from that dead seal on his plate. Though Yin preferred cooked seal, in his opinion raw seal was too squishy.

But then a Steel servant came up to them. "Rex ignis, dixit se similis loqui tecum."

Blizzard nodded and stood up, nudging Yin to get up and follow the Steel servant. As the three of them exited the dining hall Yin realized what the Steel servant was saying. King Ignis wants to speak with us? Ein! He knows! I can't just bail, I'm sorry guys. Forgive me.

The last thing Yin could remember before going into a private room with King Ignis was bumping into a ruby red dragon with an orange ridge.

~~~Stormmover~~~

Watching Yin follow that Steel dragon out of the dining hall worried Stormmover, she knew something was coming. But what it was, she was still clueless about. The only thing she really cares about is going home to Raindrop and Tao, and leading her Rouges. This whole Ein situation had nothing to do with her dragons, or did it?

But as Stormmover finished a wild hog (which wasn't as delicious as it seemed) she spotted a familiar dragon approach her. It wasn't like she was alone, some volcano and sea dragons sat around her but the dragon kept walking towards her. When the dragon suddenly stopped they made a talon motion that said 'follow me'. When Stormmover shook her head to say 'no' she realized who the dragon was and stood up immediately.

The dragon didn't flinch or even blinked in surprise. They just stood there and stared at the dragon chief. But Stormmover flew over to the dragon's side "Ruby?"

"Chief Stormmover," Ruby said, bowing her head.

Of course, Stormmover thought violently, one of Taos friends. The protective one I think. I think? Of course, it's the protective one! Or the violent one, I'm sure it's about the same thing. Tao probably got worried and sent her to fetch me, but how did she know where I am? "What are you doing here Ruby?" Stormmover asked.

"Tao and Raindrop sent me. They're worried about some prophecy stuff." Ruby said.

"But how did you know where to find me? I don't recall telling Tao where I was, and I'm sure Raindrop isn't good with maps." Stormmover grunted. She didn't like saying bad things about her mate, but if it was to make a point then she must.

"You might not notice Chief, but I leave the forest all the time. I guess you could say... I'm an adventurer!" Ruby bosted.

Stormmover sighed, "Ugh, I'll deal with that another time. Go back and tell Raindrop that I'll be home soon."

"Raindrop said not to come back unless you're with me. So you either come with me, or I stay here until you decide to do so. How much longer can you stay here with all these other dragons? What if they try to do something to do? I'm the closest thing to a guard in our forest, so I need you to come back with me now. I don't know how much longer until an attack will come." Ruby explained, smoke rising from her nostrils.

She's right, she is like a guard. But I cannot leave until the festival is over... "Fine, but you need to look like my guard they'll throw you out otherwise. So follow me."

Stormmover started walking towards a corner of the room, with Ruby at her heels. I need to find a helmet or something, even a brass claw would work. Then she saw it, an old fashion suit of dragon armor. Perfect! No one sees Rouge dragons that often anyway! They'll just think we don't have any other armor! Which I guess is true, since we don't really have guards... it's a hidden forest after all.

"Oh no, I'm not wearing that!" Ruby argued. "I'm not about to wear what my ancestors wore while fighting in the Dragon Civil War!"

Though Stormmover silenced the young dragon. "You just have to put on some of it, now shush before you cause some attention."

Ruby grumbled while Stormmover put the armor on her daughter's friend. It made so much noise getting it off the armor stand and onto the dragon, which it seemed to fit snugly. The chainmail seemed to cover up much of Ruby's scars and squished her ridge. "I hate this!" She would complain.

"Stop it, you're making me act like your mother." Stormmover shot at her.

The only thing Ruby refused to put on was the helmet (which only gave her two small eye hols to see and two small nose holes to breath, it also had an orange feather on top), and the wing guards (which weighed down the wings and practically made them into weapons but made it impossible to fly). Everything else she put on, Ruby even put on the neck and tail armor. Half of Ruby looked like it was made of chainmail and the rest was dragon.

"Ugh. I feel like a statue, how did any dragon move in this!" Ruby continued to complain.

"Enough, now we're going to go and feast. I didn't want to do this but I was invited to, so just relax and eat." Stormmover ordered. The two walked back over to where Stormmover was sitting originally, and Ruby sat by her side staring intensely at everyone in the room like someone was about to attack her Chief. 

Then Stormmover got an idea and took off one of the many necklaces she was wearing and nudges Ruby. "Bow your head."

Ruby did as she was told and bowed and Stormmover put the necklace on her guard. "Why are you giving me this?" Ruby asked, looking at the jewelry.

"A small thank you. You don't have to put up with this and you are. And you're going along with this terrible plan. Don't talk back to me, I can at least give you that. I also thought it was funny because it's a ruby necklace and your name is Ruby." Stormmover thanked.

"Ew," Ruby groaned, "no more mushy stuff and dad jokes. Stop it!"

"I'm your chief, I can do as I wish!" Stormmover said though jokingly.

"I'm starting to wish my parents didn't abandon me while I was still in my egg. This is a nightmare." Ruby grumbled.

"No saying bad things about your parents! Parents are a treasure!"

"Not my parents."

"Then I'll adopt you once we get back," Stormmover announced.

"Oh, Notch please no..."

"Better start calling me dad, Ruby!"

"End my suffering..."

~~~Stacy~~~

It was almost time, Ein would soon arrive and he would be dead. Easy as one, two, three right? Well then apparently you don't know Ein.

He's going to have guards and healers right there. Stacy thought. They're going to try and save him I know they are. He controls them like a puppet, like how he controlled me.

"Hello!" Said a voice. Stacy couldn't see where the voice was coming from until she looked down at the table she was walking on and remembered fairies were here too.

"Oh sorry, I thought fairies couldn't speak English." Stacy apologized.

"Hm? We don't. It's probably these cool necklaces we got when we arrived! I think it's supposed to allow everyone to talk an mingle with one another!" The fairy explained.

"Thank makes sense... do you know who made them?" Stacy asked. But she had a feeling she knows who made them.

"I don't know, and I don't really care. Can I get another leaf?" The fairy asked.

Not forgetting that she was undercover, Stacy ran across the table to a giant bowl which had a salad inside. She picked up one of the giant leaves and brought it back over to the fairy. "Ah!" The Fairy screamed. "Too big! Make it smaller!"

Stacy ripped off a small piece of the leaf and gave it to the fairy who started taking little bites of it. So, putting the leaf down, Stacy walked down the long table, waiting for someone else in need of assistance. Though then she saw Stampy and he came running up to her. "Hello, Stacy!" He said in his cheerful voice as if everything was suddenly okay.

"Did you notice those necklaces everyone is wearing?" Stacy asked.

Stampy nodded. "I did, what do they do?"

"A fairy told me they allow everyone to speak and understand English. Though I don't know how they work. But I can probably guess who made them."

"Doesn't that damage his soul or something? You know, if he uses it too much?" Stampy asked.

"I don't know. If it does, then he probably doesn't even have a soul anymore. Or a heart for that matter. But he has a stupidly big brain." Stacy growled.

"Cry me a river,
Cry me a river,
I cried a river over you."

Stacy and Stampy looked over when they heard people start to sing and music started to play. It was coming from a table in a corner of the room. On a smaller table, a group of humans where singing and a few were playing instruments.

"Well, I guess even dragons need entertainment." Stampy joked.

Though the blues song reminded Stacy of a certain day six years ago. "You know what this reminds me of?" She asked.

"What?" Stampy asked, a smile still on his face.

Stop smiling you big doofus. "That day you had a duel with Grazer."

"How does that song remind you of that!" Stampy howled.

"When I got that note, I thought you died!" Stacy argued.

"Okay, that's one coincidence!" Stampy barked.

"Now you say your sorry,
For being so untrue."

"Okay, two coincidences." Stampy muttered. "But I really am sorry! He just made me so mad! I learned my lesson though, and I can't really carry as much as I used to."

"You drove me,
Nearly drove me,
Out of my head!"

"I have a feeling someone wrote this song just about us." Stampy thought aloud.

"Or it's just one giant coincidence," Stacy said, trying to be rational. Though it was a too funny coincidence to just let go.

"It's fate, Stacy! Like those two cats, Cassie told me about!" Stampy argued.

"What cats?"

"Nothing!" Stampy said quickly. "I mean, it's more than 'just a coincidence'. I'll believe anything until someone proves me wrong."

"Anything? That's a bit much isn't it?" Stacy asked.

"Now you say you love me (you love me).
Well just to prove you do.
Come on and cry me a river,
Cry me a river,
I cried a river over you."

Stampy sighed, his ears turning a bit red. "Stacy I just... I love you. This might sound cheesy, but I cried a river over you. After... you know. Werewolf or not, alive or ghost, fate or not. I love you."

Stacy couldn't help but cringe the slightest bit, he was right it was cheesy. But she didn't know if she loved him as much as he was giving her. Yes, she saw him more than a friend but not as much as she used to. Maybe it was the situation they were in, or she finally realized how outrageous it was to have sex with your friend and say you're in love afterward. But something was definitely there, she knew it was.

"I love you too, Stampy," Stacy said with a smile, but it quickly faded when she heard the dragons start to quiet down. "Go tell Lukas. They're coming."

~~~Romeo~~~

Romeo was wandering through the halls of the dragon palace, Julia, Moon Moon, and Dawson walked with him. Moon Moon treated Romeo like the alpha he would never be. Dawson just held onto her backpack, and Julia refused to look at him. Yeah, I hate you too you little brat. Romeo thought. He was never good with any child that wasn't a werewolf pup.

The four of them were walking towards the spot Ashton said he would be, for they heard sea dragons (who had these weird contraptions on their necks/gills) say so. But it was weird since he thought dragons didn't speak English.

So, the four of them kept walking and they got further and further away from the rest of the festival when these two werewolves passed them. Romeo suddenly stopped when he heard his name get called by a familiar voice, "Romeo? Is that you?"

Romeo looked back and saw his successor standing there, with a person who looked like Gill but a werewolf. "Oh my Notch, it's you!" Romeo called out to the werewolves. One was Aiden and Romeo could swear the other was Gill.

Aiden ran over and hesitated for a second before giving Romeo a hug. "I thought you where... but how!"

"I'll say what I always say. Magic. Now, who's your cute friend over there?" Romeo jokes. He'll admit that he was a bit more of a jokester now that he was alive. Also, he wasn't an alpha anymore, since that was Aiden's job.

"You remember Gill right?" Aiden said, still hugging Romeo.

"He was a werewolf this whole time!" Romeo gasped.

"Well... no," Aiden said. "I turned him into one..."

With a burst of anger, Romeo pushed the werewolf away from him. "You did WHAT! Aiden! You know that's irreversible right!"

"I know," Gill said suddenly, walking over to Aiden. "I wanted this. Ever since he told me... I wanted this."

Romeo watched as Gill grabbed Aiden's hand. The kids 'Aww'ed almost silently. But Romeo stared at the two werewolves confused. "What's this? What's going on here."

"Romeo, we're mates," Aiden said bluntly.

"Yeah, I can see that. But Aiden, what about the pack?" Romeo asked. I want to rejoin them as soon as possible. Maybe if I kill myself again I can get Xara and Magnus out of the Inferno.

"The pack?" Aiden repeated. "The pack doesn't exist anymore."

But Romeo just laughed his own wicked laugh. "You're joking, right? Good one Aiden!"

"I'm serious Romeo. As the alpha, I dissolved the pack. We were loosing more and more people. They were so close to finding us out, and after you died I didn't know what to do. All I know is that Dan and Axel are still in the village, Ellegaard left, and Stella probably went back to Champion City." Aiden explained. "And Gill and I ran away."

"Um... Axel died..." Dawson said. "But Stacy's back!"

Oh right, I forgot Lukas said something about Axel. Or was it Petra? "So it's just me, Dan, and Stacy? Against a growing population of humans! Aiden, you have to come back! Bring your boyfriend too! I'll go get Stella in Champion City, there's still time to take it over! Now that most of the important people are gone, we can pick them off one by one!" Romeo cheered.

But everyone just gave him a horrified look, and the children inched away from him. "Is that all you still care about? Taking over New Growler?" Aiden asked.

"I tried telling you guys. He's pure evil, we should just kill him while we outnumber him!" Julia yelled.

"I agwee!" Moon Moon agreed.

"See Romeo? No one wants to fight anymore. Get over it! There's still time to change, Romeo. Be the alpha you want to be." Aiden persuaded.

It was a convincing offer. To be a werewolf who didn't have to kill and threaten all the time. But his powers were a curse. This is who he was, not one of those Half-Cat people. They went extinct because of their peacefulness. "Weakling. Werewolves aren't supposed to be peaceful! We're made to fight! And I already am the alpha I wanted to be. If you won't help me, then I'll just leave you faggots be."

Suddenly everyone gasped and the kids hid behind Aiden and Gill. All of them muttering, "His eyes."

"Pathetic!" Romeo shouted. Running past his old pack member and towards the dining hall.

And he clearly heard Julia say, "Ein got him. Pardon my language but he fucking got him!"

~~~Lizzie~~~

Sitting on top of a chandelier for hours was the most boring thing Lizzie has ever done. And shifting her gun from hand to have was making her anxious. She was getting peckish and she couldn't even eat any of the food that the dragons where feasting on below. Granted most of it was raw meat, but she would eat the salad they had or fish.

Of course, Petra was there too. Watching Lukas and everyone else to make sure they were safe. "Don't drop that gun, Lizzie." Petra would always remind her.

When Petra saw the signal Lukas gave her eyes lit up. "Get ready, they're coming."

Lizzie almost dropped the gun when she saw this giant dragon walk in and sit on its throne. "That's king Ignis," Petra said with a growl. "He's the bastard who ate Axel. The Werewolf on the table is Ein."

"Why is his fur white? It's like Moon Moons." Lizzie pointed out.

"Does it look like I know? Or that I care?" Petra said harshly.

"Sorry," Lizzie mumbled.

At first, the two just sat down and food was brought to them. The Dragon King started to eat what Lizzie assumed to be a dead cow, and Ein pleasantly ate... something. She couldn't tell what it was since she was up so high.

"I don't think I can do this, Petra. We're too high up, what if I miss?" Lizzie asked, scared of what might come.

"Then uh... we succeed later than expected!" Petra encouraged.

So Petra and Lizzie continued to look down at the unknowing dragons, werewolves, monkeys, fairies, and whatever else was down there. Lizzie saw a big tank with a seahorse in it and assumed that was the seahorse king. Two sea dragons sat next to the tank on the table and they had these scarf-like things on their necks. It wasn't a scarf but almost a tank itself. It had water in it, and Lizzie assumed their gills in their necks where moving. Oh, right they breathe water. Duh, Lizzie! It's probably to make sure they don't die, this volcanic air isn't good for... anyone really.

She also saw this one dragon who was wearing almost full suit of dragon armor, and it looked like she was going into battle after the festival ended. Probably just a guard Lizzie. Focus. You need to kill this werewolf for... whatever reason.

When the king dragon put down the final bone of what he was eating the servants took the plate away and put a little tray with a cover on it, in the plates place. The king he stood up, spread his wings and started to speak. "My friends, welcome to my festival! As you all know our troops have been training and running drills together since you first arrived. And I think that is a great way to prepare our soldiers to learn how to fight alongside one another in case of an attack."

"I didn't know dragons spoke English," Lizzie whispered to Petra.

"Well, this one is a smart ass," Petra whispered back.

"But before we start our meeting I have an urgent announcement," The King dragon continued, "my friend, Ein of the Werewolves, this man sitting here right now. His fiance was kidnapped by some of our prisoners who escaped. If you see any humans, not in uniform, then capture them and bring them to one of the nearest guards."

"Bullshit!" Petra hissed, luckily she whispered.

"Regardless, let our meeting begin!" The King announced. "First we have a few royals in our mist, royals who we haven't heard from in years. Stormmover, the Rouges Chief. And Icarus, the Sky Dragon Dictator. An honor to have you both here."

Stormmover stood up, Lizzie already knew who she was, and watched the chief bow before sitting back down. And another dragon, who was a light red stood up and bowed before also sitting back down. "Let's not waste much time," Said Icarus. "I have to get back to my Sky City as soon as possible."

Stormmover nodded her head. "Agreed."

King Ignis nodded as well. "Yes. Well, it's not just dragon royals who are here today. The seahorse king, the fairy general, the satyr minister, and the monkey king, I welcome you. But I summoned you all here not just for a festival and a feast, but for the crowning of a new king. And it has to do with my friend Ein here, and why his missing fiance is so important." King Ignis lifted to cover off the tray and a crown made of golden twisted wires was there. "It will do for now, until we can secure the real werewolf crown. But Ein bow, please. Everyone, please rise."

"No!" Petra growled.

All the dragons, monkeys, and fairies stood up and stared at the table. Ignis lowered one talon so that Ein could walk on, and the werewolf bowed once he has done so. And with his other talon, Ignis carefully lifted the small distorted crown. "Ein of the Werewolves, from this day forward you are no longer just a werewolf. But you will lead the werewolves. You will be the king the werewolves deserve after so many years of oppression. We have the Monkeys, Fairies, Seahorses, Satyrs, and the leaders of all these types of dragons to witness this moment. I present to you all, King Ein of the Werewolves!"

King Ignis put the crown on Eins head and the werewolf stood up and turned to the crowd of creatures cheering for him. "Shoot him, Lizzie! Shoot him now!" Petra yelled at her.

Lizzie aimed the gun right for Eins heart, but memories of that day six years ago. That day Lizzie killed Stacy... and later died herself. And the look on Eins face, he looked so happy and he never did any wrong to her.

"I can't do it Petra..." Lizzie said, aiming the gun away from Ein.

She couldn't bring herself to kill Ein.

~~~Petra~~~

"What do you mean you can't do it!" Petra shouted at the British girl. You will NOT ruin this plan... you will NOT ruin this RIGHT NOW!

"I'm sorry... but I just can't," Lizzie said almost silently.

"Lizzie, he will kill us all if he's king! He hates humans! Gr... give me that gun!" Petra roared.

Petra grabbed the gun from Lizzies lose grip and aimed it at Eins heart. I shot him before I can do it again... it was hard to get the aim right with a bunch of creatures clapping (which made the room shake) and the fact that Lizzie was trying to stop her.

"I'm trying to save you, Lizzie! Let go of me!" Petra shouted.

"Don't shoot him Petra!" Lizzie argued.

You'll thank me later when the day is saved, Lizzie. Oh my god, I just realized that I'll have to kill Stacy and Dan when I get back. Romeo too but no one cares about him. Maybe I can scare that werewolf kid into never coming back. But I have to deal with this all over again... then I'm probably going to have to kill Cassie because she killed Lizzie and that's a death sentence. So much death and I have to do it... all of it... What will everyone think of me then?... What will Lukas think of me?

Ein held up his hand and everyone went silent. The new king smiled and started to speak. "I made those necklaces that you're wearing right now so that you'd understand me. And Ignis and I made this decision before I was crowned king. You'll notice that some troops are missing, and that's because we sent them to a village called Growler Town to bring the werewolves living there, to the palace."

But all Petra heard was, "We're going to kill the werewolves until they surrender!"

Some creatures mumbled but Ein raised his hand again for silence and he continued. "I hope that you'll all agree since Ignis and I are close allies now. But we declare war on Humans and Magic Users!"

"Outrageous!" Shouted one dragon.
"Ridiculous!" Shouted another.
"You'll get us all killed!" Shouted a third.

But one sea dragon stood up and leaned towards the tank with the Seahorse King. "The Seahorse King does not wish to be a part of this war!" He translated from the blubs of the seahorse.

"I agree!" Said a tiny voice, probably the fairy general. "We're already part of a war, with those damn seahorses! We lost enough lives already!"

"I understand your concern, but those Humans and Magic Users need to die. I think you'll find it... very agreeable." Ein said. Snapping his fingers every creature who wore the necklaces eyes turned gold. It was like looking into a sea of gold coins. But Petra could spot a few oddballs, Strommover and the dragon in armor next to her where fine, so was Rocky (but Yin couldn't be found). But to have entire leaders at your feet gave Petra a fright.

"Sorry, Lizzie..." Petra said one last time, and she pulled the trigger.

~~~Dan~~~

Dan pinched himself because he thought that he was dreaming. Ein becoming the Werewolf King? That's crazy! But it was all true, every bit of it was true.

Bang

Dan looked up to see Petra and Lizzie climbing up the chandelier and into a hole they made earlier that lead to the wagon on the roof. Dan volunteered to be the last one to leave, to make sure Ein was dead.

There where screams, a lot of screams. Dragons started to argue and protect their leaders in fear that they might be next. King Ignis just stood there with Ein in his talons horror plastered all over his face, and then he flew off calling for help. That was his cue to go.

Dan met rocky in the kitchen and the dragon carried him onto the roof where he met his friends. "Where's Romeo?" Gabriel asked.

"He's under Ein's control. There's nothing we can do, we have to leave him!" Julia explained.

Petra was already there poking her head out of the wagon. "Dan, did I get him?" She asked.

"Yeah, I think so. We'd better hurry, Ignis went off to get help." Dan explained.

"Quickly! Everyone into the wagon!" Lukas announced.

Dan wasted no time to get into the wagon and he realized how many people there were. Jess held her sick brother Jesse in her arms. Gabriel sitting next to them followed by the three kids (Julia, Dawson, and Moon Moon) who were all huddled together. Then Cassie at the end with her safe (her white pumpkin head was taken off). But that was one side. On the other sat Lizzie, Petra, Lukas, Stacy, and Stampy. Dan had to squeeze in there but he managed to fit along with Dawson's dog and Winslow and a few bags.

Were's Ro... oh right. Ein got him... do his spells last even after someone dies? Is he that powerful? I hope Petra got him, we all hope Petra got him. Are they going to kill me once we get back? What about Stampy? It'll destroy him if Stacy dies again, he might actually kill himself this time. I guess we'll have to see. Dan thought.

Ashton grabbed onto the wagon and lifted off into the air, everyone could feel the air getting lighter. And when Dan looked outside he could see them flying away from the palace, and you could still hear the screams. "We'll be in New Growler by tomorrow morning. So saver that food and hold it in. I don't like making a lot of pit stops." Ashton advised.

Dan just kept looking back at the palace and saw two dragons speed away. A light blue one and a dark red one wearing armor. "Hey, guys, two dragons are following us!"

Cassie looked out the back and eased everyone's nerves. "It's just Stormmover and Ruby. There Rouge dragons, they're not under any spell. Thank goodness too. Let's close the flap, Dan, we all need some rest."

"Good idea." Dan agreed and helped tie the flap at the bag of the wagon shut. Petra tied the one at the front end. There was still a breeze but at least it wasn't that bad.

Dan put his head down on the wooden floor and shut his eyes. Letting the peaceful darkness of sleep take over his body.

~~~Ruby~~~

Ruby flew as fast as her wings could take her, taking off that stupid armor on the way. Metal clanged against the volcanic rock and homes below. I'm not going to let my chief die. Not like this!

"Fly faster Chief!" Ruby called back to Stormmover, who was taking off and tossing some of her jews below.

"I'm trying!" Stormmover called back.

Rub scanned the area for a place to hide so they could take off their accessories, for they were only slowing them down. With her hawk-like vision, she spotted an ally between two dragon homes and dived between them and Stormmover followed.

"Good plan Ruby. Here, I'll help you." Stormmover offered.

In only a few minutes after escaping the two of them heard many wings flying above, it looks like many dragons were trying to escape with their royals, but Ignis' guards brought them back. "We must hurry," Stormmover said to herself.

They did the best they could, but Stormmover couldn't get off the chest plate or the steel tip claws, and she refused to let Ruby take off the necklace. Though Ruby admired the fact that her Chief was more than just jewels, and it was amusing to see a leader dump most of her accessories into a pile just waiting to be burned.

"But what about your crown? And your rings and that necklace?" Ruby asked.

"As much as I hate this crown, I must keep it with me. My rings must stay, each one is important and I'll tell you why later. As for the necklace, Raindrop made it for me. I'll always have it with me." Stormmover explained.

"Okay that was nice but we really have to go. Follow me Chief!" Ruby said.

She suddenly zoomed up in the air and headed North East, that's where the Rouges forest was. Every now and again Ruby looked back and saw Stormmover right behind her, giving her an encouraging nod every time.

It was almost a miracle when Ruby saw the forest again. It wasn't her forest, but it was a forest. And the air was much cleaner than the air in the Dragon City. I'd never thought that I would see a tree again.

The two landed to rest in a cave and Ruby stood guard to watch the entrance. I must protect my chief. Raindrop and Tao are counting on me. I won't fail, I won't fail, I won't fail.

"Thank you, Ruby." Stormmover thanked.

"I was just doing what I was told," Ruby said. It's not like I could leave you alone anyway.

Stormmover got up and sat next to Ruby, nudging their wings together. "Um, can you not touch me?"

"For Jeb's sake, you never did this before? Well, that settles it, you're my daughter now!" Stormmover announced.

"Very funny Chief," Ruby said sarcastically. What's the big deal? My childhood sucks and my sisters are crap. Well... I think they're my sisters.

"Don't question your chief!" Stormmover bellowed.

Ruby rolled her eyes. "I kinda have to if my Chief wants to become my dad."

"Ruby, you deserve better than the life you live. Everyone lives peacefully except you, now I can understand why. So I want you to start training dragons to fight! We need an army now that a war is just around the corner." Stormmover explained.

"But you don't have to adopt me." Ruby pointed out.

"Technically I do. Since I don't have any siblings and Raindrop doesn't have any siblings and we don't really have an army, one of my children has to lead. And there's no way I'm sending Tao off to a fight. So it has to be you. I won't accept no for an answer young hatchling!"

"Ew, don't call me a hatchling..." Ruby complained.

Stormmover chuckled. "Too late my little hatchling!"

"Stop!" Ruby complained again. No, don't stop. I always kinda wished to be called that. 'hatchling' I never had that kind of embarrassment before.

"I'm your father and your chief, I can do as I please!" Stormmover joked.

"Seriously, stop. You'll embarrass me to death before you can even adopt me against my will."

"Alright fine, now stop standing watch and rest. I should be the one watching you!"

Ruby didn't try to argue this time. She just curled up at the back of the cave and let her sore muscles rest. Though She couldn't sleep so she thought to herself. So, I'm going to have a family. That's neat. I wonder what it would look like to other dragon tribes. You see these Rouges? Well, now they have a super cool, firebreathing monster in their family! Fear them! Rawr! Ew no, Ruby stop. Don't think about fighting, it hurts. Ugh the agony, kill my muscles, please! What is she doing now?

Stormmover wasn't keeping watch anymore she was laying down beside Ruby so that Rubys back was to her. Though Ruby didn't question it, it was probably what most dragon families did, but she wouldn't know.

When Stormmover put her wing around Ruby she almost attacked her, then remember that it was just the chief or her dad. Should I start calling her dad?

"Goodnight Ruby." Stormmover yawned.

"Goodnight Dad," Ruby whispered back. Letting herself relax and be engulfed by Strommovers warmth.

~~~Stampy~~~

Stampy woke up the next morning with a headache. Or he assumed it was morning, he couldn't really tell. At least before they got on the wagon the night before they took those stupid outfits off and had on their normal clothing. Except for Dan who still wore his tuxedo.

When Stampy looked to his right he was greeted by a wolf ear with brown fur. And then he noticed that the wolf ear was Stacys and that she was snuggled up next to him. Why does she have to be so cute when she sleeps? Stampy thought.

When Stacy's wolf ears started to twitch and she started shivering Stampy did the nice thing (as most nice guys tend to do), and he took off his cat hoddie and carefully put it on Stacy. And instantly her shivering and twitching stopped and she snuggled up next to Stampy again.

"Having fun over there lover boy?" A female voice asked.

Almost jumping in fear Stampy looked to where the voice came from and sighed in relief.  It was just Cassie. "You scared me there Cassie!" Stampy whispered.

"Sorry, it was hard to resist the urge. It's just so cute to find that even after six years you still treat her the same." Cassie said.

"Why would I treat her any different?" Stampy asked.

"I don't know. I was never in love so I don't really know how this works. Well, I love Winslow, he's like my little brother. Thanks for taking care of him by the way. I appreciate it!" Cassie thanked her friend. "But what are you going to do next? Go back to living a normal life? Or work with Stacy at the farm? That is if she's still alive."

"What's that supposed to mean." Stampy hissed.

"Easy there, I'm not going to do anything. It's Petra you should worry about. Remeber, Stacy and Dan are werewolves. Lukas will probably tell Petra to kill them." Cassie explained.

I haven't thought of that... "I'll plead for their lives. If they don't listen then... I'll... um..."

"Calm down Stampy. I'll back you up. Because they'll probably end up killing me too, you know for the whole Lizzie thing. Don't worry about it right now, and go back to sleep. I'll make sure Petra doesn't touch her." Cassie said.

"Aren't you tired though?" Stampy asked.

"I'm a night owl. Plus being part Fairy I don't need sleep, I recharge when I'm in the sunlight. Don't worry, I won't be creepy." Cassie promised.

Cassie looked out the flap down at the ground. You could still hear Ashton's wingbeats, and he never lost his rhythm. Though he didn't bother looking outside or paying attention to Ashton right now. He was so tired and so confused with... everything really. He thought it was just werewolves and potions but the world he was living in was bigger than that. His world was full of dragons, fairies, murder, and spells. Along with a psychotic werewolf who wants to do diabolical things to the world. Knowing the people of New Grower, they weren't going to let that happen.

But Stampy let himself relax and held Stacy in his arms. I'll do my best to protect you. I won't let you die again, not for another forty to fifty years. I promise you, Stacy. I love you. I'll always love you, and I'll never make you cry over me again. I hope that we can finally be happy...

~~~Gabriel~~~

When Ashton finally landed in New Growler Gabriel was excited to be back home, he's never been away for so long before. Of course, he had to wait for everyone else to get out first, and he had to help get Jesse out of the wagon where two people carried him to Olivia's place.

"Where's Axel?" Was the first thing Olivia asked. Though she only asked Gabriel which made him a little uncomfortable. What do I say? He's a werewolf? Ein killed him? He was eaten by a dragon?

"We couldn't fit any more people into the wagon, so another dragon is bringing him back. I don't know when though." He lied. But Olivia believed it and went with Jess to help heal her brother.

Radar walked up to the group and almost jumped back in fear of the dragon. "W-why is there a dragon!" He shouted.

"Hey... I have feelings too. My name is Ashton. Oh, by the way, I'm sorry. I'm the one who broke into that shop last night." Ashton apologized.

"What? Why!" Radar shouted some more.

"It was important Radar," Lukas said. "Wow, it feels good to be back and to be the mayor again!"

"Or right," mumbled Radar, "Lukas is the mayor."

Petra stood there awkwardly, her gun still in the wagon. Though suddenly a boar came running out from the crowd of people and Petra picked it up. "Spot! Oh, how I missed you!"

Stacy and Dan had their ears tucked away and Moon Moon was wearing the top hat Dan wore yesterday to keep his ears hidden. Gabriel lost track of them after but he assumed they went to the farm and Stampy helped Cassie carry the safe back to her shop. Dawson and Julia went back into the wagon and sat there, and talked to one another.

Radar looked over at Gabriel and gave him a hug. "Gabriel! You're back! My best buddy!"

Gabriel chuckled. "It's nice to see you too Radar."

"What happened to Boxer? Benjamin will want to see his friend again!" Radar asked.

"Boxer... let's just say... he sacrificed his life to bring back Stacy and Jesse. He died a hero." Gabriel explained.

"Oh... oh no. I'm sorry Gabriel, I didn't know." Radar apologized.

"No need my friend. He wouldn't want me to cry over him."

After Lukas finally managed to dismiss the crowd by saying there would be a town meeting he turned his attention to Radar. "So Radar... what happened while you were mayor?"

"U-umm," Radar stuttered. "well, we have visitors."

"Oh? Visitors? We don't get a lot of those. Who are they?" Gabriel asked.

"Here's the thing... they're werewolves..." Radar mumbled.

Lukas stayed silent for a minute, and it started to creep Gabriel out. But when Lukas took a deep breath he got really scared. "You. Invited werewolves... into New Growler... Radar, I know you're new to this. But I assumed you learn your lesson about werewolves."

"Y-yes I remember the incident. But their leader said Dragons attacked their village and burned it down!" Radar said.

"I find that hard to believe from werewolves." Lukas sighed.

Then Petra stepped in. "No, he's telling the truth. Ein told everyone that he sent dragons to Growler Town to 'collect' the werewolves. But I knew he meant to kill them."

Lukas face palmed himself in the face about five times before Gabriel stopped him from hurting himself anymore. "Stop that Lukas. Radar where are the werewolves?"

"Most of them are in the church. The others are in the old werewolf cave. But don't worry! We have guards there, and they promised to be obedient!" Radar said.

Lukas let out a long sigh. "Anything else?"

"Just one tiny thing." Radar answered.

"And that is?" Petra asked. "What? I can be political!"

Radar let out a nervous laugh. "Funny thing is... Trust me you'll love it, it's hilarious! Silly me am I right? I made a deal with their leader... we're their allies now... so this is their new home..."

Note: AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH OVER 10K WORDS!!! AHHHHHH THIS IS INSANE! WHERE'S MY AWARD, I'LL TAKE IT NOW! Oh and D&W is almost over, so that stinks. But wow what a chapter am I right? So many different perspectives! Let's just hope I'll be able to take it easy for awhile, eh?