Smoldering Embers

[Ryuu]

Disclaimer:

This is a work of FanFiction based on the characters of the Dragonlance series and is not intended to infringe on the rights of the copyright holders to the franchise of the Dragonlance series. The author makes no claim to the ownership of the material in this work, is not authorized by the copyright owners of the Dragonlance property, and assumes full responsibility for this work. The purpose of this FanFiction is solely for the entertainment of the reader.

This story follows-up on "Draconian Measures" by Don Perrin & Margaret Weis


Smoldering Embers


Kisith's dreams disturbed him so much that his thumping tail woke the Baaz next to him. A kick from the irritated neighbor woke him and Kisith turned over on his stomach. He slowly smiled. Then promptly screamed.

Kisith leapt up, screaming in terror, spinning about on his cot. "I'm dead! I'm dead!" he screeched, before toppling over onto the man who had kicked him.

"You're damn right you're dead!" Mitz roared, struggling underneath the crazed Sivak. But Kisith's next words froze him with dread, as well as all the others in the barracks.

"Dragon! Silver DRAGON!!" Kisith yelled looking wildly at his arms. "I'M DEAD!!! I'M A SILVER DRAGON!!!!"

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE!?" Slith's voice boomed over the chaos. There was a momentary silence as he stood in the doorway, torch in hand lighting the room.

"S-sorry, s-sir!" Kisith said, struggling to get off Mitz. "Bad dream. I saw a silver dragon—" At those words, even Slith's heart skipped a few beats. He missed much of what Kisith was saying as the man helped Mitz to his feat. "—it killed me," Kisith was saying when Slith regained his thoughts again, "and I became a—"

"ENOUGH!" Slith bellowed. "We get the picture. Get your ass to the latrine and clean up! The rest of you, get back to sleep!"

Kisith followed him out, leaving the others to lay back in their cots, Mitz taking Kisith's. But no one went back to sleep. They all lay there, staring with eyes wide open. They had all had such dreams.

"Sorry, sir," Kisith said to Slith as the Commander of the First Dragonarmy Engineers Regiment headed back to his room. "It won't happen again."

Slith stopped, slumping his head. "No. You're wrong," he said, sighing. "It will happen again."

"Have you had such dreams, sir?" Kisith asked with genuine concern.

"We all have," Slith replied. "At one time or another, we all have them. Some of us--it's every night."

"What do you make of them, sir?" Kisith asked with a whisper, approaching closer to his commander. "What do they mean?"

"Terror," Slith whispered back.

"Who are they?" Kisith pressed, dropping the sir.

The Sivak Commander thought about the questions for several minutes. "They're our parents," Slith finally said, his eyes had glazed over as he searched his soul.

"What do they want?"

Several more minutes passed. "I--I don't know--"

"Why are they here?"

"They watch us."

The room darkened as the torch sputtered out. Blinking, Slith glanced at it in his hand.

"I said get your ass--" he shouted, turning about. He stopped when he saw the hallway was empty. A terrible dread made him feel small and helpless, and he couldn't stop the shaking of his hand.


Kisith made sure the latrine was unoccupied before relaxing his guard. Then he began laughing, but holding his breath to keep from making noise. In a few moments, it was hurting so much he was on the floor.

"If only they knew!" he hoarsely whispered to himself. But he couldn't decide if it would be funnier if they knew what was going on, or if they were kept in the dark. But then, subtly, he began to weep. And this time, he didn't try to hold back the sound. "If only THEY knew!" he finally cried.

And he wept for hours for it had not been the dream of a silver dragon that woke him. It was far worse than that. In the end, he knew it was time. Oh, how he had come to love these guys. They had been through so much. They had come so far. He wanted to see so much more. But he knew it was the end. It was time to move on . . .

By the time Slith had come out of his trance, Kisith had already departed the city.


"Deserted?" Slith asked, astonished, the next morning at roll call.

"There's no sign of him," Gloth said. "We searched everywhere. If he committed suicide, we would've found his body."

"It's still so hard to believe," Slith protested. "With all that we've gone through together."

"But Kisith transferred into the Engineers from the Third Infantry just after the move," Gloth pointed out. "He might not have been as disciplined as the rest of us."

"He had an exceptionally bad dream," Slith said, absently. "If I had a dream that bad--where would I go?"

"Sir?" Gloth asked.

"There're two possibilities," Slith said with a sigh. "He deserted, like you surmised. Or he's gone to suicide where it wouldn't distress the rest of us."

"That bad of a dream?" Gloth asked.

"You were there last night. He said he had dreamt of being killed by a silver," Slith said, shuddering. "He became a silver. You know how we Sivaks die," Slith said, glaring at the draconian.

"Yes, sir," Gloth replied. "I understand," he said, backing away.


"Whoa, there!" the man in dark robes yelled, grabbing the Kender by the topknot. "That's my purse you snatched!"

"I don't have it!" the Kender protested, looking up at the man who held him. He was a tall one, with dark robes, long shoulder length dark hair, and neatly trimmed moustache and goatee. "I didn't take anything! I'm an honest Kender going about my business!"

The man began chuckling at that, and several people who stopped to watch the Kender get what he deserved also laughed. The man watched as several other Kender among the crowd, innocently picked up a few things among the throng. He snorted.

"Then what do you call that?" he asked his prisoner, pointing to the object in his hand.

"How did that get there?" the Kender asked, astonished.

"Come on!" the man said, dragging the Kender away, through the crowd. They all laughed as they resumed their lives. They all knew what was in store for the pest. Or so they thought. If only they knew.

Out of sight of most of the people who had witnessed the apprehension, the man directed the Kender to an alleyway and to a door hidden among the debris congested passage.

A rough shove sent the Kender on to the floor of the darkened room. He stepped in behind to close and lock the door. A gesture from his hand brought light to fill the empty room. The Kender, not knowing what to expect, backed away.

"Wow! You're a wizard!" the Kender exclaimed. "I've always wanted to be a wizard! Can you teach me?"

The man made a gesture and a chair materialized. He moved to sit down on it.

"That's great!" the Kender shouted, jumping up and down, clapping his hands. "Can you teach me that one? I'd make a great wizard!"

"Now why would you want to become a wizard?" the man asked, stroking his chin. "If you were a wizard, you wouldn't be able to do the wondrous things an ordinary Kender does."

The Kender stopped jumping up and down, and stared at the man sitting there. He had never seen such an understanding human, and a wizard at that. Certainly not a dark robed wizard.

"What things is that?" the Kender asked.

"Why, you guys are so fearless!" the man responded with a pleased grin. "Come here," he waved, pointing to his purse, still in the Kender's hand.

"Actually, you don't know it, but I'm really glad you took that," he said, taking the bag and opening it. "I was just looking for someone to give this to for a very important and special mission," he explained, shaking out a large ring with a huge diamond embedded, with several smaller stones of various colors about it. All the colors of the rainbow. The Kender's eyes bugged out at the sight of it.

He took the Kender's hand, and placed the ring on his middle finger.

"Really!?" the Kender asked, astonished. "You want me to have it?"

"Oh, absolutely!" the man said with a smile.

"Wow!" the Kender exclaimed. "I was worried, well, not worried, you see, because Kender don't have fear, so we can't worry, but with so many people, especially wizards, and most especially, wizards with dark robes, not that you're like that, understand, but so many wizards wouldn't understand, so they don't treat us good, but you're different from that, I'm sure, wow, wait until I show this to my friends--"

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa there!" the man said, still smiling. "I'm sorry to say, but you can't show this to your friends. They would get jealous and try to take it from you," he said with such concern the Kender listened very closely. "In fact, you mustn't show this to anyone. After all, they would never believe that I really gave this to you. You must only show it to one person. The one I need you to take a message to. No one else. Understand?"

"Well, that's going to be a problem, isn't it?" the Kender pointed out. "It's such a huge ring, I wouldn't be able to hide it on my finger." He tried to take the ring off. Only, the ring wouldn't budge.

"Well, it's going to be a bigger problem, because I can't take it off so I can hide it in my pocket," the Kender complained.

"Oh, don't worry about that," the man said. "If it was in your pocket, some other Kender or someone may take it without knowing what they found. This way, it's secure right where it's at."

"Well, how am I going to keep from showing everyone the ring?" the Kender asked. "Especially, since you told me I shouldn't. And you're right. No one would believe you gave this to me."

"Well, you're a very bright Kender!" he chuckled. "And here, you see, you thought of everything, just because you're a Kender. Here, I am, a wizard, and I hadn't thought of that!" The Kender beamed at the praise. No one who wasn't a Kender had ever praised a Kender before. "But don't worry, that's an easy fix." He passed his hand over the ring, and the Kender saw it fade, but not completely disappear.

"There, now," the man said, smiling. "Now only you, me, and the one you need to go to will see it. Everyone else will think your hands are empty."

"So how do I find the person I need to see?" the Kender asked. The man had stood and unlocked the door, and opened it.

"Wow!" he said, in imitation of the Kender. "You really are a bright one! But I surprise you! I thought of that, already!" he said, leaning forward, grinning. "The instructions are in the ring! It'll tell you what you need to do."

Laughing, the Kender leapt out into the alley.

"Oh, by the way," the man called out before the Kender got out of sight, "it's not a person you need to go see. It's a dragon."

The man was the only one laughing when he closed the door again.


Tooky tried to turn about to have another talk with the kind wizard, but his feet wouldn't obey.

He didn't quite like what the man said as a parting call. No, he didn't like it one bit, and wanted to turn around to explain it to him. Only his feet continued to march him out of the alley, and into the street.

Not only was something wrong with his feet, but his hands didn't seem to work either. As he marched out of the town, his hands swung mechanically at his side, a most unnatural behavior. He had even tried calling to someone for help with his unresponsive body, people passing by, other Kender, et cetera. Only his mouth wouldn't cooperate, either. And they obviously saw something was wrong with him, but they stepped away and kept their distance. Tooky wanted to cry, but even that wasn't working properly.

He traveled several miles out of town then turned off the road in disappeared into the woods.


After the Kender left, Phelps stopped chuckling. With a sigh, he sat down on the chair again.

"Now, the ugly part begins," he muttered, combing his fingers through his thick mane of hair.


Her sleep was a fretful one. She wanted to remain in her slumber, but her dreams were urging her to wake. The Loss, the Great Loss ate at her heart until she could not tolerate it anymore. She woke with a tremendous scream.


Tooky had settled down into trying to enjoy the ride he was on. Someone was using his body, and it wasn't him. Only he was still along for the journey. He tried to make the best of it. So far, it hadn't been very bad. He had never been mountain climbing before, but his body moved like it had been doing so since before he started crawling.

Then he heard that scream as he approached the cavern.

Then all his body parts started working again.

Then he had to quickly clutch a hold of the rocks by himself.

"Hello, Little One," Tooky heard the man's voice say. "Don't try to speak out, or look around for me. I'm not really there. This is the ring speaking to you." The Kender stared at the ring in amazement.

"There wasn't very much time to explain," the ring continued. "Suffice to say, I needed you to travel immediately. Now that you're here, about to enter the dragon's lair, I'll release some of the control I had taken, but not all of it. For instance, you won't speak until I direct you and you'll say only what I want you to do. You'll need some of those Kender reflexes to avoid the traps so you can deliver my message. And you certainly don't need to speak to move silently. However, do not try to run away, or I'll just take full control again and march you right down the dragon's throat."

"So let's get a move-on!" and his hand with the ring flung itself off the rock, almost taking him with it. "I promise, as soon as the message is delivered, I'll release you from my control. And you can even keep the ring. But you need to get in there this instant and deliver my message!"

Tooky thought about it and decided he didn't have much choice but to go along. He managed to get onto the ledge, feeling good that he had done so silently.

But then he heard his heart beating. And it was getting louder.

How am I going to move silently if my heart is making such a racket? he wondered. To make matters worse, he could feel the ground start to shake to his heartbeat. That's sure to wake the dragon!

He turned around. Oops! Yep! Sure enough, there it is!

The silver dragon, running for the entrance, saw him, too, and paused.

"A KENDER!? Get out of here!" she roared, resuming her charge.

"Kiss my sweet little ass, Lizard Lips!" Tooky shouted. Did I just say that?!? he wondered with his eyes wide in astonishment. He raised his fist, the one with the ring, and there was a sudden flash. Startled, the dragon halted.

"There you go," the ring said to Tooky.

Tooky couldn't believe it.

"THAT'S THE MESSAGE?!?!?" he shouted at the ring.

There was no reply.

"Uh—hello, there," Tooky said to the dragon. "I hope you weren't offended by that remark, and I certainly would never want to offend a silver dragon such as yourself, because silver dragons are so nice, but you see I met this kind wizard in black robes, only I don't think he was so kind, now that I see he played a little joke on the both of us, but he said he had a message I needed to deliver to you, and he sort of, well it's not sort of, somehow, he did force me to climb up here and say that just now, and now that I said it, he's released me to be on my way, and I hope you don't take offense, but I don't think I'm going to be applying for any more message delivery assignments, so if you don't mind, I think I'll leave!"

"Uhn-n-n!" the dragon grunted.

Tooky took that as an assent, and was over the edge of the rock before the dragon might change its mind.


She hadn't changed her mind. She simply didn't have a choice in the matter. That spelled ring had delivered some sort of encumbering web that was still pushing on her body. The squeezing was slowly getting stronger. There was only a little time left, she realized.

Using all her strength, she managed to step out to the ledge. The Kender was further down the cliff side than she thought possible for anything without wings, and still going. He was no longer any concern of hers, however. She had to get to ground before the web pushed her too much to tolerate. Desperate, she launched herself into the air, barely able to hold her wings out for the controlled plummet.

Tooky saw the dragon fly past. Since it was now below him, he thought it wise to change direction. He started working his way about the mountain.


Phelps was absently poking his fork into the table and tugging at a lock of his hair with the other hand while he waited. Three others sat at the same table, glaring at him. Two women and one man, all in black robes with sub-commander insignia. One woman had bright shoulder-length red hair; the other darker with muddier colored tresses. The man was a big boned individual with short blonde hair. The bar keep kept a nervous watch on them, as did the other patrons in the tavern, but they didn't cause anyone trouble, and no one gave them any.

"Well?" Phelps asked when they finally set aside his report.

"It changes nothing, Phelps," the man replied.

"That's just the main group, Varm," the smaller wizard said. "Wait until you hear about the others that showed up and what I found when I back-tracked them. But I don't want to get too far ahead. We wait for the rest."

At that moment, a blue dragonarmy commander walked in with four bodyguards. They took in the scene, noting the table holding the group of wizards. But the glare from one of the wizards sitting with them stopped them cold. They chose a table closer to the door.

Then another robed sub-commander walked in. He saluted the commander, and looked about the room, then approached the wizards. The commander noted this one had a very deep tan as opposed to the other wizards.

"Zin," Varm greeted, "glad you could make it."

One more stepped through the door. Phelps took one look and said, "Shit!"

She was strikingly beautiful, with her glossy black hair and lithe figure and not much in the way of covering it.

The commander, too, saw the woman and, with a leer on his face, was on his feet in an instant grabbing her arm. She glared at him with hard, silver eyes. But before either could act on what they were about to do, the commander's arm was gripped in a vice-like black glove.

"You would be well advised to not make scene, Commander," Phelps softly growled. The wizard used his free hand to pull back his robes to reveal a general's insignia on his tunic. "This individual is under my command and is a valued spy to our cause. If you make an issue, you risk revealing her status and her mission, and I would not be a man you want pissed."

"Yes, sir!" the commander replied. "Sorry, sir!"

"And one more thing: you will not mention our conversation; you will not mention her; and you will not mention me. That also goes for the rest of you," he said glaring at the others sitting at the table. Phelps firmly escorted the woman to his table.

"You were told to come prepared, Vix," he hissed in her ear.

"And I told you what you could do with it!" she spat, sitting down.

"And that's why you're so comfy right now," Phelps said, sneering.

The newcomer sub-commander had just finished the report, and Phelps snatched it from his hand and roughly tossed it at Vix. "Read!" he said, without preamble.

She continued to glare at him with open hostility.

"Read it!" Phelps snarled into her face. Vix opened the report and began skimming through it as Phelps sat down. He glanced up at the other troops across the room to see them watching. The commander and his men quickly averted their eyes.

Vix first skimmed over the report, then began to realize what was in it, and carefully reread the entire statement from front to back. When she set it down, she was visibly shaken.

"That's not all," Phelps said. "As I mentioned to Varm, Shenna, and Ursa, there was another group that showed up just before that fight. And guess who they had with them?" he said, pulling out a folded sheet of paper from inside his robes. When Varm unfolded it, he couldn't believe his eyes. Neither could the others.

"Is that--? Those are--!" was all that Zin could get out pointing at the drawings.

"Yes!" Phelps hissed. "And that's not all."

"How could there be more?" Vix asked, also staring at the drawings, now genuinely concerned.

"Remember I said there was a new group?" he asked, pulling out another bundle from inside his cloak. It was a book, much of it in tatters and bloodstained.

"Don't worry, he still lives," Phelps said, noting their reaction to the bloodstains. "Well, I happened across the trail they took to get to the city. I traced their route back to the valley they held up over the years since the first war before coming here. That's how I came across this," he said, hefting the manuscript. "Also, I heard some interesting stories from people they encountered along the way. We don't have time to read it now. We'll go over it in transit. Is everyone in agreement?" They all nodded, and Phelps put away the book. With the report and the folded paper, he made a show of sending them up in magical fire.

"Absolutely, this will not be handled in the same manner as the last time!" He growled. "I saw something back then that you didn't! I couldn't stop you because you wouldn't listen! I've watched this group and now I have proof. You follow my lead this time!"

They prepared to leave. Ursa returned a crystal sphere she had borrowed from Phelps, snickering.

"I like what you did to that Kender!" she said. "Positively evil!" The others glared at her. She looked back, defiant. "He's gone around that mountain four times already!" The others all rolled their eyes.

"We'll pick up some needful things before we leave town. Then we'll start where that new group settled after the war. It was in a valley controlled by hill dwarves," Phelps told them. "That'll let us change out of these clothes for a while."


Soon after leaving the tavern, they waited along the road to ambush the commander and his lieutenants, liberating the uniforms. However, they did not put them on right away. Instead, as they approached their first destination, they changed to outfits more to their liking. Those clothes only lasted for as long as it took to speak with the dwarves and some people involved in relocating a temple. Soon after that, they switched to the captured armor.



"This damned thing itches!" Vix complained, trying to stretch her arm out, digging under the blue dragonarmor. They had arrived at an abandoned fortress that apparently saw some nasty fighting before it was deserted.

"Those bindings wouldn't be there if you had answered the summons," Phelps shot back.

"We're sick of this false hope!" she yelled. "Year after year, you drag us through this. You're worse than Takhisis!"

"It's not false, I'm telling you!" Phelps argued. "But I knew you'd never believe it. That's why you have to come see for yourselves. This is where I had been watching them, until those others showed up. They picked up and moved to a better sight. Since we're almost there, I have to bind the rest of you."

"Is that really necessary?" Varm asked.

"Unfortunately, yes," Phelps said. "To keep you from prematurely ending their progress. You're liable to be disappointed by what you'll see at first. But I'm not removing it until you open your damned eyes and see their progress!"

"This is where so many of them have died," Ursa said, sadly, looking about.

"And this is where a new hope has been planted," Phelps said with steel in his voice. He pointed. "Starting over there," he said. "In the remains of that building."

"Wow!" they heard a childlike voice yell out. Glancing at each other in shock, they rushed in. They saw Tooky digging among the debris on the left side of the gate.

"It's the Kender!" Vix growled. Tooky glanced up to see them and turned to run. But a gesture from Phelps froze him and made him turn to walk mechanically up to them.

"What are you doing here?" Phelps demanded.

"Well I delivered your message to that silver dragon," Tooky yammered at his customary high speed, "but I have to tell you that wasn't a nice thing to say to him--"

"Her," Vix corrected, interrupting.

"--so when the dragon came rushing at me, I left, but he--"

"She," Phelps said, cutting in.

"--flew past me on my way down the mountain, I decided to circle the mountain, rather than go up or down, because neither choice seemed like a good one at the time, but after five times around, it started getting a little boring, so I climbed down, figuring the dragon got tired of waiting for me because I didn't see him--"

"Her," they all chimed in.

"--and will you stop that!?" the Kender yelled at them.

"Just to let you know, that dragon is a female," Phelps said, patting the Kender on the shoulder.

"Well it wasn't a very nice thing you had me say!" Tooky yelled.

"You're right. It wasn't," Phelps replied, looking back over his shoulder. "But she was upset and wouldn't listen to what I had to tell her." He looked back to the Kender and said, "It's understandable why she was upset. However, what I had to tell her was very important. I had to get her attention."

"I don't understand," Tooky complained. "Why is she upset?"

"She--and many of her friends--lost some family during the war," Phelps said. "I had some news about them. But she's gotten tired of hearing bad news. Only, this time, I have some good news to tell her."

"Did you get to talk with her?" Tooky asked.

"She's--taking the time to listen," Phelps sighed.

"Well, when I came down the mountain and found the road back to town, I saw you and the other wizards attack those soldiers, so I followed you here. I found some neat looking crystal needles," he said, holding up his hand with the ring. Several slivers of blue crystal were held in his fingers.

"By the way, you couldn't have talked with her very long," the Kender said, suddenly getting suspicious. "The dragon was nowhere to be seen when you took those soldier's clothes. You could've had me deliver the whole message."

"All I needed you to do was get her attention," Phelps said with a grin, looking at them. Vix rolled her eyes.

"What are we going to do with him?" Ursa asked.

"Actually, I believe this is a fortunate meeting for us all," Phelps said, with a smile, looking at the Kender. "You know, I just realized I have another message that needs delivered."

The Kender's body jerked as he tried to get his feet to start running. Phelps blinked in surprise at how much he was resisting the spell.

"No more messages! Please!" Tooky cried.

"I promise! No more messages to dragons," Phelps said, looking back at the others. They busied themselves looking at grass, the sky, birds, debris . . . Zin and Ursa started whistling.

"No more dragons?" Tooky confirmed, relaxing.

"Absolutely, you have my word," Phelps assured him, smiling. "No more dragons."



"What did you have him say to those hobgoblins?" Vix asked as they ran.

"I've had enough of this!" Varm shouted, stopping to turn, ripping off his blue dragonarmy armor.

"No!" Phelps yelled, grabbing his arm. Of them all, he was the only one still in the dark robes. The rest had most of full suits of Dark Warrior armor, missing pieces to make it look like they had been in a running battle and full retreat. "We need them to keep chasing us a little further! Just two more miles!"

"We need them?" Shenna demanded.

The reached the top of the ridge and the fortress city of Teyr came into view. They all stopped.

"A dwarven city!?" Zin asked, glaring at Phelps.

"It had been abandoned since the Dragonlance War!" Phelps yelled, huffing. "By the way," he said, catching his breath, "look at me! Look at what I'm doing right now! When we get in sight of them, do what I'm doing! It'll look more convincing!" he gasped. He started running again downhill toward the fortress.

They all looked at each other, and shrugged, and started loping after him with an easy gait. A few minutes later, thirty hobgoblins cleared the ridge. The pursuers paused to catch their breath, but their leader pointed out the city that was the destination of their quarry and urged the chase to resume.


Slith was summoned to the battlements when the sentries spotted the hobgoblins cresting the ridge.

"What's going on?" he demanded, looking through the distance viewer.

"Sir! Six humans are being chased by a more than a score of hobs," Cresel reported. "They look to be trying for the city to make their stand."

"Notify the Third!" Slith said. "Have them prepare for a sortie."

"Sir?" Cresel asked.

"They're dragonarmy regulars," Slith said. "I've no love for the humans, but I have even less love for hobs. If they're this much effort for the hobs to slay, they may be worth the effort to save."

"Yes, sir."



About a thousand yards from their goal, Phelps looked back at the others.

"Ah, hell, this will never do!" he gasped. He stopped and turned, readying a spell he hoped might make the difference between success and failure for their mission. The others saw him stop, and slowed to a walk, barely breathing hard. The hobgoblins were almost on them.

"So we make our stand here?" Varm inquired, drawing his sword. He looked at it as if for the first time.

From that angle, he probably was, Phelps thought.

"No choice in the matter," Phelps replied getting down on one knee. The hobgoblins were fifteen paces away. He triggered his spell. Five paces.

A slab of water, three feet thick, crashed down over Phelps, his party, and the hobgoblins. Everyone except Phelps was surprised. They stood there, gasping and dripping wet, glaring at Phelps. He pushed himself back to his knees from where the water had slammed him into the ground and smiled at them. He gestured to the hobgoblins. Their pursuers all had been knocked off their feet and were wallowing on the ground, trying to figure out what just hit them.

"Kill them?" he said with upraised eyebrows.

Before the others could think of anything to say, draconians swarmed about to do just that. Varm stomped over and hauled the man to his feet.

"Now--you guys look like you been in a running battle," Phelps quietly gasped, catching his breath. Varm looked about and saw the others bent over, breathing hard, and trying to wipe water from their eyes and faces. Varm released him and started to chuckle, which became full laughter when the others suddenly looked at him, puzzled by what was so funny.

Phelps turned to the nearest draconian and said, "Thank you, Stilix!" The Bozak blinked in surprise that this human would know his name. Phelps also started chuckling, only puzzling the draconians further.


"You don't say?" Slith asked. Yakanoh, the Third Infantry commander, Prokel, the sub-commander for the Ninth, and Governor Kang were listening to the detachment leader give his report. He had just relayed what Stilix had told him.

"What do you think?" Kang asked his second.

"It smells fishy to me, too," Slith said. "I could see somebody getting chased down by hobs running up to our doorstep. But then, for them to know a minor infantryman at a glance and call him by name. He's obviously a spy."

"Too obvious," Prokel added.

"Prokel's right. It is too obvious," Kang said. "That was done for a reason. They want us to know they're spies."

"He's a wizard, alright," Slith said. "And one powerful enough to dump that much water on everyone is strong enough to take out all those hobs, by himself with a more lethal spell. And long before they got here."

"Which means that was done for a reason, too," Yakanoh said. "The question is, why?"

"So what would they get for having us know they're spies?" Kang asked.

"It would get them killed," Slith quipped. There was silence for several moments. Then Slith's eyes widened. Turning to look at Kang, whose eyes had also opened, they both simultaneously said, "It would get them watched!"

"So where's the benefit in that?" Prokel asked. There wasn't any answer forthcoming for several minutes.

"That would depend on why they're here," Kang sighed. "But I'm inclined to let them if all they want is just to be scrutinized. I can't see anything they might gain by knowing they're monitored. And, maybe, just maybe, we can find out what they're about."

"Where are they now?" Yakanoh asked.

"In the mess hall," Prokel replied, "with about two dozen of Slith's men watching them."



"You may think it strange, but I think they're kind of cute," Phelps quietly said. They looked at him as if he lost his mind. Phelps looked back at them. "In a childlike sort of way," he added with a shrug. It didn't change their expressions. "I guess you just have to let them grow on you," he said, giving up. "One would've thought you, of all people, would understand."

Just then, twenty new draconians walked in, and they stared at them. "Thesik!" Varm hoarsely whispered and started to rise, but Phelps grabbed his arm.

"One of yours?" Phelps quietly asked, and Varm nodded. "That's too bad. She was the one who had to put down Maranta." Varm looked at him in horror.

"Oh, no!" he said, sitting down, stunned. "Not her! Her own brother!"



"Why are those humans staring at us?" Riel asked after several minutes of staring back at them.

"Yes," Hanra complained. "They look as if they never seen draconians before."

"Especially since they got more than twenty Baaz, Bozaks, and Sivaks surrounding them," her sister, Shanra added.

"Wait here," Fonrar ordered stepping toward the table. Thesik, as usual, went with her.

"Is there something we can do for you?" Fonrar demanded.

"It's okay," Phelps said. "Varm, here was just reminded of Maranta. When he saw Thesik, well--he took the word of his death pretty hard."

The draconians were all stunned.

"Y-you knew the general?" Cresel asked, coming closer.

"In better days," Varm finally said, still staring at the female Aurak.

"Before his downward spiral," Phelps added for him. He looked back at Fonrar.

"So you guys must be the females," he said, striking up a conversation.

"How would you know that?" Fonrar asked, looking back at the rest of the girls. They had the same armor and clothing as the rest of the city's population.

"I don't know," the man shrugged. "Bigger wings in relation to the body size? Longer tails. And you smell different--nicer somehow."

Twenty-five sets of forks from twenty-five draconians pretending to eat clattered to twenty-five platters.

"Nicely coordinated," Zin muttered to Vix, looking around at the draconians watching them.

"Gentlemen!" Phelps said, rising with cup in hand. "To the lost First Dragonarmy Engineering Regiment. It is to our great honor we have this opportunity to turn a valuable treasure over to their brethren," he said, pulling a bundle from his robes.

"Wh-wh-what?" Fulkth asked, looking about at his fellows in utter confusion.

"We came across a record detailing their journeys after they finished the Dragonlance War," Zin said. "Their leader was called Kang."

"What are you talking about?" Fonrar asked, astonished. "They're not lost!"

"Of course they are," Phelps said, unwrapping the bundle. "Otherwise, they wouldn't have left this behind," he said, hefting up a tattered bound manuscript. "I know, because there's even an account about how they fought to recover this very book. With the damage and blood on it, and so much of it missing, Kang must've been killed."

A huge sivak burst out laughing, pointing at the book.

"KANG ISN'T DEAD!" Granak bellowed. "Kang caught a spear from a goblin. That book saved his life, but Kang felt the damage was too much to retrieve the record, so he left it! We're the First Dragonarmy Engineers!" he finished, waving his arms to include everyone there.



"Are you certain it was wise to say those things to the females?" Ursa asked once the door was closed.

"I found out those females are a curious bunch," Phelps explained, "and because they've been so frustrated about getting information, they've learned to be sneakier than Kender. When something piques their curiosity, they don't let any obstacle stand in their way. They dig their way around it."

"So you think they're going to investigate us," Varm asked.

"If you were into gambling," Phelps said, pulling out a magical time measurer, "you would be making money putting down odds that they're already on their way. I'd put my money they'll send Thesik," he continued, looking about the room. "She's tall, but skinny as a wyrm, and with no wings to get in the way--" he settled his sights on the ventilation grill. He was greeted by the noise of a retreating scramble when he approached.

"Damn!" he said, impressed. "That's gotta be a new record!"

"Speaking of Kender," Vix said after several minutes, "you don't suppose he could've followed us here, do you?"

"If we have Kender stew in the morning, then I'd have to say yes," Phelps replied.



"They knew I was there!" she screamed. "It's impossible, but they knew it!"

"Easy, Thes," Fonrar said, trying to calm her down. "Could they have heard you crawling in?"

"I was there before they entered the room!" Thesik screamed. "The first words out of their mouths were about us! Us! About how we females are sneakier than Kender! And they knew I would be the one sent! And they knew exactly where I was!"

"Keep it down!" Fonrar hissed. Just then, there was a knock on the door. They heard the key turn in the lock, and Cresel, followed by Slith came in.

"Attention!" Fonrar yelled out.

"At ease!" Slith yelled while they were still in motion.

He came in to sit on the bunk nearest the door and looked them over.

"I heard about the conversation in the Mess Hall," he began, "and I figured you would probably send someone to investigate. I wanted to speak with you before you--"

"We a-already h-have, sir" Fonrar said, her voice trembling.

"So I gathered from the screaming," Slith muttered. Thesik audibly gulped. "What happened?" he asked.

"I-I didn't get to hear much, sir" Thesik said.

"Quiet!" Slith suddenly hissed, jumping up. In a couple of minutes, he heard it again. Muffled scraping sounds from the air vents.

Oh, no, Fonrar thought, cringing. All the females cringed. So did Cresel, none of which was lost on Slith. The commander knew it was time to roll his eyes.

Taloned fingers gripped the grill from the other side and quietly lifted it and set it in the shaft. A Sivak head poked out and saw the commander with a hand over his eyes, shaking his head back and forth.

"Oops!"

"Which one are you?" he asked, not even looking up. "Hanra, or Shanra?"

"Both," Fonrar replied. He sighed.



Kang was on the floor, holding his sides, laughing to split a gut.

"I-I'm s-sor-ry!" he finally managed to get out. "I know this is serious! I just wish I could've been there! Oh, for the Queen's love," he gasped, getting control of himself again.

"After I got order restored," Slith said, continuing, "Thesik went on with her report." He relayed what the female Aurak had seen and heard, and how she was almost discovered.

"And especially puzzling is what she heard as she was getting out of there," Slith said, finishing. "Something about a 'new record'?"

"No wonder she was pissed," Kang chuckled. "Beaten at her own game!"

"I agree. Those girls are good at this, but I'm afraid they're playing against masters," Slith wryly commented. "At least that wizard is. The soldiers asked all the questions, and that mage, Phelps, had all the answers."

"I suspected they could've heard about Maranta and female draconians when I visited that wing of Dark Knights," Kang said. "Or even got their names and some of that information from my book. I'm a little suspicious that there's no mention of the girls in the parts they brought back. Too much coincidence, there. But the only human that knew females smelled different was Huzzard, after she joined us at Maranta's fort."

"Hell, we didn't know they smelled different until Prokel saved our tails," Slith pointed out. "And it seems they know too many things that only took place with Maranta. It's really giving folks from the Third and Ninth the creeps. These guys are definitely playing some sort of game," Slith said, shaking his head. "That wizard knows just entirely too much about us. Oh, and this gets weirder," he added.

"The Sivak sisters weren't as bold as Thesik, since even Fonrar didn't know what they were about." Slith had to stop while Kang fought another laughing fit.

"Oh, my guts can't take much more of this!" Kang finally said. "You better run! I'm going to explode!"

"They just stayed in the background, following the escorts to their rooms," Slith continued after the governor regained his composure. "They reported that just as the humans were going into their rooms, the wizard claps Fulkth and Yethik on the shoulders and says, 'Sweet dreams' and their eyes glazed over." Kang sat up fully serious.

"They spelled them? They had free run of the place?" Kang asked.

"Spelled them, yes," Slith replied. "But all they did was ask some questions. Then they went into their rooms and were locked in, happy as you please."

"What questions?"

"'Who are they?'" Slith quoted. "'What do they want?' and 'Why are they here?'"

Kang blinked several times. "Those are my questions," he muttered.

"I said the same thing when Hanra told me," Slith explained. "No, that was exactly what they asked. Quote: 'Who are they?' unquote, quote: 'What do they want?' unquote, and quote: 'Why are they here?' unquote."

"What were the answers?" Kang finally asked after puzzling over that.

"The girls couldn't hear it," Slith said, showing his frustration. "Too far away and too quiet. But the sisters said the soldiers seemed surprised by the answers while the wizard looked like he knew what they were going to be. And, the man said something about 'you see, it's spreading'."

"Spreading!" Kang asked, astonished.

"As if they're trying to track something," Slith ventured. "A plague? But no one's sick. Draconians don't get sick! And who ever heard of a disease that can be diagnosed by asking three simple questions?"

"This whole exercise--It's like someone showing disbelieving superiors a trick he's discovered," Kang muttered after some thought.

"I had Fulkth and Yethik relieved and tripled the guards, posting them on either end of the corridor to keep an eye on the men on the doors. They have orders to attack if that wizard pulls that stunt again.

"What about--?" Kang began.

"Already checked," Slith said. "The men don't remember a thing except they brought the humans to their rooms and locked them in. And the questions don't mean a thing to them, either. They're understandably upset about this, and worried they might have been hypnotized. I've got the infirmary trying to find out what it was for."



For the next couple of days, the draconians watching the wizard and soldiers spy on them saw nothing unusual. All they could tell was the soldiers were, at various times, puzzled, astonished, disappointed, and impressed. What they couldn't see was what was going on when they were locked up for the night. And a good thing, too. Phelps and the others knew the females would find new avenues or search for a new way to use an old route to spy on them. Instead, Phelps had all the routes covered with various spell and tricks.

Then, when the spelled alarm was set off by the approaching figure in the air vent, they figured Thesik was making a new try on that portal. They were wrong.

"Sweet dreams," Phelps called out, jumping up on the chest below the vent. But when he took down the grill, there was Tooky looking sheepishly at him.

After a second of mutual shock, Tooky tried to scoot back up the shaft, but Phelps had the ring take over his body again.

"Just what are you doing here?" Phelps demanded when they had the Kender standing before them.

"That wasn't a nice thing you had me say to the Hobs," Tooky wailed, looking angrily at him. "They chased me for over fifty miles!"

"Just what did you have him say to them?" Vix demanded of Phelps. The wizard grinned at her.

"It wasn't very nice at all!" Tooky said to her. "And he promised no more messages like that!"

"I said no more messages to dragons," Phelps corrected him. "I never made any promise about Hobgoblins."

"Well after I lost the Hobgoblins, I came searching for you," Tooky explained. "I figured you guys would get into trouble, and sure enough, here you are. Didn't you know this city is filled with Draconians? And they've locked you up! Here, let me get you out," he said, starting for the door.

"Whoa, Little One!" Phelps called, catching the Kender by the arm.

"It's no problem!" the wizard explained. "We're exactly where we want to be." Tooky looked at them in astonishment.

"But you've got a major problem and it's going to make our job harder if you get caught," Phelps added. "They've got draconians that are as good as you are at sneaking about. If they catch you, it's Kender stew for the troops and wizards for target practice! You better stay here and with us until we can figure out what to do with you."

"If this is where you think you need to be, then staying here with you is only the second dumbest idea you've come up with!" Tooky exclaimed. Vix snorted.

"I could give you an argument there," she muttered under her breath. "I've seen him come up with much worse."

"By the way, you didn't happen to come across any draconians in the air vents did you?" Phelps suddenly asked the Kender. The young-looking creature's eyes grew wide.

"As a matter of fact, I did!" Tooky exclaimed. "A long, thin, gold one! You're lucky I found you!"

"Actually, you're lucky you found us!" Phelps exclaimed.

At that moment, a screaming golden blur leapt from the vent opening straight for Tooky, only to be frozen in midair.

"You see nozhing!" Phelps told Thesik as she hung there. "You know nozhing!"

"I see nozhing!" she replied mechanically. "I know nozhing!"

He eased the spell to allow her to right herself, then when she was fully released, Thesik leapt back into the air vent and slithered away.

"Wow!" Tooky whispered in awe at her departure. "That draconian's moves are slick!"

"High praise from a pro," Zin muttered to Varm, grinning.

"Like I said, Little One," Phelps said, breathing a sigh of relief, "we're just where we want to be. But you being here is only going to cause us trouble. There are others like her scurrying through those shafts, so it's not safe for you to be moving about. They're as cunning and agile as any Kender I've seen, and you're no match for them."

"So what will we do with him?" Ursa asked. "He can't go back by himself, he can't go with us about the city, and he can't stay here while we go. They'll sure to search our room when we're not here!"

"Why not shrink him and put him in a pocket?" Shenna suggested.

"You can do that?" Tooky eagerly asked. Then he saw Phelps actually considering it.

"Uh-oh!" the Kender exclaimed, loosing all his eagerness to the new experience that being shrunk would bring him when he saw the wizard slowly smile.

"That's not a bad idea," Phelps slowly said, looking at Tooky with a new light in his eyes.

He tried to run.


The next day, the humans were in the cafeteria when the Queen's Own division were escorting their charges. The "dunderheads" as some of the normal draconians had named them. Men who had been split into innumerous copies by the Aurak General Maranta in a failed attempt to boost the draconian numbers.

At sight of them, the draconians watching saw Phelps nearly saw a mutiny as the soldiers suddenly became angry and agitated. Somehow, he managed to keep them out of trouble and requested they all be returned to their room to spend the night.



"Let me out of this!" Vix cried, struggling. Her form was actually starting to emerge, but for the mystical webs holding her.

"No!" Phelps shouted. "Stop this insanity! Look at their progress!"

"What progress?" Vix shouted, having to give up changing her form. The spells were too strong for her. "They're suffering! Some of them have lost their minds! Some? No! ALL! But nearly eighty have nothing!"

"Those eighty-some draks are the remains of only four or five draconians that Maranta split up using one of Takhisis' foul toys!" Phelps growled. "That was in that report I gave you!" Vix and the others looked sick.

"But look at the rest of them!" Phelps pointed out. "Instead of simply killing the 'dunderheads' as they're sometimes referred to, they're being cared for, and by that 'Queen's Own' division, as they call themselves!

"Don't you know how they all were raised after hatching? They had to fight to get the scraps of food! The 'weak' perished at the hands of their brethren, until only the most ruthless remained. Only that experiment failed! These are all the same ruthless killers the Takhisis had made. Only they're not obeying those orders, any more. You tell me that's not progress!"

"They've been touched by evil, corrupted by it yes, but they're not where they were. The pendulum still swings," Phelps insisted. "They have compassion for the weak and mentally injured. Kang had several crippled men in his group when they arrived at the fort. Those injured would've only slowed them down on their retreats, but they worked to save them. Compassion! They make peace overtures with their neighbors, when everyone, from Dark Knights to so called 'good' elves and dwarves still seek to eradicate them. They build, not just destroy. Their leader, your son," he said, pointing to Zin, "Kang is called 'governor,' not 'general,' not 'king.' They elected him! He was junior to some of the other commanders, but they deferred to him! He's a politician now!"

"Those are worse than Dark Knights!" Shenna threw in. Phelps had to stop to regain his composure. The others were also smirking. Phelps had to sigh, thinking this was a good sign. It had to be. That they could see some humor in this situation could only help to diffuse it.

"Granted," he said. "But given that in this chaotic world we now live in, you can't tell the bad from the good without a personal score card.

"So what is showing for their score?" he challenged. "Let's compare them! Red dragons giving their lives to save their dragonarmy riders--and I heard that from the rider, herself! That self-same red Dragonarmy rider also saved Kang's life, and not for the first time, I might add. And that I heard from Kang, himself! And don't forget how those children were saved at Pax Tharkis, back during the war, no less! Let's look on the other side. How about Solamnic knights committing rape and murder? And bronze dragons eating children!"

"How did you know about that?" Zin demanded, surprised.

"Hey!" Phelps said, shrugging. "I'm a spy. I have my sources. I'm supposed to know these things!"

"Is this true?" Varm growled at Zin.

"We've been working on rehabilitating him," Zin sighed, "but there are occasional relapses."

"These draconians are better disciplined, better organized, show more loyalty for their allies and each other than you do!" Phelps said, continuing. "Yes, they worship Takhisis and yes, they sometimes fight each other. But with the gods gone, their clerics no longer around to maintain the old order, people are making their own destinies. I've seen several times where they spit when they mention Takhisis. Don't forget what you heard about Kang from those Daughters of Paladine.

"They're your children! They're misguided, not Lost!" he said, in desperation. "Remind you of anybody?" he suddenly asked, gesturing to himself. They looked sharply at him. "They're even sometimes calling themselves 'Men'!" he finished. He looked at their reactions. Good, they're thinking about it, really thinking! he realized.

"They're dragons who are evolving! You've all seen evolution first hand in us. Now, as we're standing here, looking at them, these dragons are evolving!" Phelps continued to press his point. "Never mind that the selection process was divine or demonic rather than natural. Evolution's a fickle mother, making the children into all sorts of new shapes. They're your children," he repeated, "and you're about to become grandparents--"

"Babies having babies!" Ursa cried.

"They're building families," Phelps corrected her. "No child of Takhisis does these things. Sure, they may slide back at some stage. But as my grandmother said just before she died, when she found out one of us had left the faith, 'Where there's life, there's hope.' She knew, even if she would not be there to see it, there was a chance."

"It could be worse, I suppose," Shenna finally muttered. "They could've been made to look and smell human, too!" Leave it to the Brass to come up with such a crummy joke to hide her decision. But at least it was a positive decision. The others silently looked away, shamed that they had almost ended their children's last chance.

Phelps sat on the cot and wept. He wiped his hands across his face. Then some movement caught his eye, and he looked up at the air vent. He could see a gold colored object moving behind the grill then freeze. Phelps grinned.

"Poor Thesik," he said, laughing, digging his finger into his ear. "This is probably her first encounter with a silence spell this strong."

"Hello, Little One," he said when the silence over the vent had been dispelled. "And how have your dreams been?"

Phelps leapt atop the footlocker beneath the grill and removed it. The Aurak stared at them with glazed eyes. The others gathered around to watch.

"Do you recognize this one?" he asked her, pointing to Varm. Thesik looked at him for several minutes.

"There is something--I--something," she finally shook her head slowly, but continued to stare.

"She can't remember," Varm said, turning away.

"Don't turn away!" Phelps snapped. "She's still trying!"

"Who are they?" he asked, turning back to the draconian.

"I--I don't know," she stammered, causing them all to drop their heads. "But--but--they're beautiful," she added. Their heads snapped up to stare at her in shock. They were all startled, none more than Phelps.

"That's never happened before!" he whispered in a hoarse breath.

"Don't stop!" Vix urged in a whisper.

"What do they want?" Phelps asked, continuing the examination.

"They want--to--be--free."

"What the--?" Varm asked.

"Who is she talking about?" Shenna asked.

"Why are they here?" Phelps asked, dry mouthed.

"Th--they--are--looking . . . they are--lost," Thesik whispered, tears streaming down her face.

"By Paladine!" Ursa whimpered. "It's not been us they've been dreaming about! It's been themselves!"

"Father," Thesik finally whispered, looking at Varm.

"Now do you believe?" Phelps asked them.

"Let us help her!" Shenna cried pushing forward. "We can break the spell! Restore them to their rightful forms!"

"No!" Phelps shouted. "You'll only break their bodies! The Queen's spell is flaking away, piece by piece. Some day, their souls will emerge. But let them remain draconian. They're not suffering from that."

Phelps released his hold on her. Thesik blinked and suddenly realized her predicament. She shot backward down the shaft until she reached the T-juncture and spun about to slither to safety faster than a man could run.

"Nimble little worm, ain't she?" Phelps muttered in awe. Varm had to burst out laughing between sobs.

A little piece suddenly fell into place, connecting two large portions of a puzzle that had been randomly drifting in his mind. Phelps suddenly, angrily turned on them.

"Hey!" he yelled. "Something's just occurred to me! Each of these draconians was a dragon's egg, right?"

"Of course!" Shenna quietly hissed. "They're our children!"

"Then answer me this:" Phelps hissed back. "Given that all but those twenty are males, and all of them had to fight and kill the weak in order to earn the right to live, right?"

"So?" Varm growled, not impressed by the wizard's deductive reasoning.

"So this," Phelps stepped into his face. "After all that and their numbers were whittled down to just the most ruthless, there were still thousands, no, tens of thousands of draconians during the War of the Lance!" Varm's face fell. He nervously looked at the others, who nervously looked back. Phelps swept his gaze about, looking at them all as Phelps continued. "Nearly a hundred thousand, maybe more, DRAGONS that should have been! What about those that were killed and all those other females never hatched? Just how many eggs were stolen?"

"Then what about this question:" he asked when no one came forward with a reply, "how much do growing dragons need to eat? Who were they going to eat? Just what were you guys thinking?"

"Yes, it's true," Vix quietly said. "We were planning for the next fight with the Queen. Most of us, as well as most of our children, were expected to die in the coming war. They were to ensure our species survived in some number."

"Only we didn't expect all our children to be casualties," Zin muttered. Phelps looked stunned, then relented.

"I understand," he said with a sigh. Before anyone could say more, the lock to the door unlatched and Kang, followed by about two dozen draconians marched in.

"Governor Kang!" Phelps greeted cheerfully. "It's good to see you again. We were hoping to get a chance to speak with you."

"No more tricks--" Kang began, cutting him off.

"And how have all your dreams been?" Phelps continued, interrupting. The draconians stopped dead in their tracks.

"Well, it certainly looks like you've piqued their curiosity," Vix said, looking at them.

"They're not done yet," Phelps said, stepping to the open door. "AND ALL YOU GUYS BEEN SLEEPING WELL, TOO?" he yelled out the door. He listened for a moment before sticking his head out to glance about. Zin, curious, walked over to see how many were out there. It looked like nearly the whole city lined up in the corridors. And all of them were armed for battle.

"Yuck!" Zin spat. "Not a very sociable visit."

"Well, when you've lived with them as long as I have, you kind of get to know how they think," Phelps said, walking back to the others. "I figured they would pull an attack like this to get to the bottom of what we're doing." Suddenly, he stopped, staring at Kang. Then he looked at several of the others in that first sortie that had entered. "Hmm," he hummed, nodding his head in approval, "and even now, they still surprise me," he muttered slowly raising the volume of his voice.

"So what do you intend to do about them?" Varm asked, also seeing what Phelps had noticed. Phelps could tell that they all had.

"Keep going," Phelps loudly said, nearly yelling and shrugged his shoulders. "We need to know how far it's progressed. I've not had a chance to check Kang before. I've already checked Slith once before, and we can see how it's progressed in the same individual."

"The poor things," Ursa shouted, looking at Kang. "Zin! Look at how his hand was injured!"

"Oh, don't worry about Kang," Phelps yelled, laughing. "He's been doing well, so far. He's really earned their respect and admiration, and like I told you, he is their future. He and Fonrar, here," he trailed off, giving the female Bozak a fond caress on the cheek. He stepped over to stand in front of Slith.

"If you guy feel sorry about anyone, pity poor Slith, here," Phelps shouted, grinning over his shoulder.

"What for?" Shenna asked.

"Well, Kang only had to choose one," Phelps yelled, turning back to face the sivak. "Poor Slith, on the other hand," he shouted, shaking his head. "When he chooses one of the Sivaks, the other's going to kill him. If he knew better, he'd should try to escape someplace, before it's too late."

"And what about Thesik?" Varm asked. "Who will be her mate?"

"Well, we can only hope another Aurak shows up sometime soon," Phelps loudly said, sighing.

Phelps looked over the Sivaks on either side of Slith, trying to make up his mind. Finally, he pointed to the one on his left.

"Shanra," he said, stepping over to her.

Vix giggled. "How can you tell?" she asked.

Phelps looked past Slith to the other, then back to the one he chose. Looking back to the others, he laid his finger along his nose. "Shanra," he declared with a toothy grin.

"Who are they?" Phelps asked. But the female Sivak didn't answer.

"Huh?" Phelps asked, surprised.

"That's Hanra," Vix whispered into his ear. Phelps looked angrily at her.

"No way!" he shouted. "I've watched them for months! I know!"

"Hanra, who are they?" Vix calmly asked.

"They--they're us," Hanra whispered, the last word so faint, she had to squeak it out.

"Even further than Thesik!" Varm exclaimed.

They continued, checking with nearly all two dozen. All but three, who they steadfastly ignored.

When they finished, they moved to take their seats in front of the group, Phelps patting Slith, Kang, and Fonrar a on their shoulder as he walked by. "So, are you convinced now about what I've showed you?" Phelps yelled at them. "How about you, Governor? Any questions?" he asked, going to his chair.

"Nothing?" Phelps loudly asked again, after sitting down. "We know you three didn't go under the spell. We can tell, because your eyes didn't glaze over," he said as the three stood still as their breathern. "By the way, isn't that wax in your ears uncomfortable?"

"So who are you? What do you want?" Kang growled, blinking his eyes to glare at them. Kang made no move to attack, being out numbered. But he did dig the wax out of his ears. Fonrar and Slith did likewise. The entire squad had prepared for the spell, but somehow, only the three managed to avoid the effects. "We haven't heard you answer those questions! Why are you here?"

"You know who we are and what we want, Son," Zin said. "We're people who care about you."

Kang suddenly felt shaken, although he couldn't tell why. Then he realized the man was speaking in Draconian.

"What did you do to the twins?" Fonrar demanded. "Did you do that to Thes, too?"

"They haven't been harmed," Phelps said, smiling at her. "You've watched us the whole time."

"And we still don't know what you did," Slith hissed, advancing menacingly, "or why."

"So which girl have you chosen, Slith?" Phelps asked, and the Sivak stopped dead in his tracks. "When I properly release them, they won't remember being spelled and nothing said here. But if you harm me, you shatter the spell holding them. They'll remember everything that took place, everything I said about you and them. Do you really want that?" Slith visibly paled with the threat, and Kang had to admit he had to admire someone who could give Slith pause.

"So what are you investigating?" Kang asked. "Just what is 'progressing' that you can track with three stupid questions? A disease?"

"It's not the progress of a disease," Phelps explained, "but a healing."

"A healing?" Kang inquired, puzzled. "What healing? No one's sick or injured!"

"We know you find our answers frustrating," Varm said, "but that's because you're not asking the right questions."

"Dreams," Fonrar whispered. "This is about our dreams. The dragons in our dreams. Who are they? What do they want? Why are they here?"

"That's right," Ursa softly replied.

"WHY?" Slith hissed, whirling on them. "What about our dreams? Why you?"

"The answers are within you," Shenna said.

"Seek for the right questions," Vix added.

"It's only a matter of time," Zin explained.

"All you have to do is open your heart," Ursa told them.

"Then you'll fly free of your pain," Varm finished.

"Until then, it's best to let sleeping dragons lie," Phelps concluded.

"No! Stop!" Kang cried out, but it was too late. None of them had wax in their ears to protect them this time.


They left the city, giving Governor Kang the excuse they would return to their units and report nothing but hobgoblins in the area. It had been fortunate nearly the entire city had been involved in trying to find out what they were about. It saved a lot of effort that otherwise would be spent fixing everyone's memories in a piecemeal fashion. The party held up in a cavern in a nearby ridge and stayed there a few days to throw off suspicion that might develop for the timing of their coming and going. Phelps released them from the confining webs so they could revert to dragon form.

"I still think you should apologize!" Tooky said after getting over the surprise, glaring at Phelps. They had let him ride in Vix's armor when Phelps had shrunk him. Now in the cavern, they restored him to full size. "That was a nasty thing you had me say to those hobgoblins!"

"Well, I'm sure the hobs had much worse said to them," Phelps replied with a smile. "They're used to it by now, I'm certain."

"By the way, what did you tell them?" the silver asked. The wizard just chuckled.

"And, absolutely, you should apologize to her!" Tooky insisted, looking at the silver dragon.

"Actually," the dragon said, nuzzling the Kender, "what Phelps had you to say was the nicest thing anyone could've said to me."

"I think I'm sure I don't want to be a wizard or a dragon!" Tooky finally said after thinking about that for several minutes. Phelps raised his eyebrows, looking puzzled at the silver dragon, who conveyed her confusion as well.

"Why?" they both asked, simultaneously.

"Because, you guys are just too weird!" the Kender huffed.

"We certainly can't hide the fact they're being watched," the gold dragon said.

"But we can be certain we can hide how they're watched," the bronze countered. "If you would still be willing to do so?" he begged Phelps. The man nodded, grateful for another chance to help. He ran his fingers through his hair. He was going to miss that thick growth. It had been such a long time since he last had any hair.

"Are you going to have any trouble getting back in?" the silver asked. She held on to the Kender, who was still surprised at their true form.

Returning to his guise of a Sivak, Kisith smiled.

"I may have latrine duty for a year or so," he said with a grin. "Actually, I've just hit on an idea on just how to get back in, if you'll just cooperate when you leave."

"O-oh, no!" Tooky cried. They all laughed.

"No Tooky," Kisith said with a toothy grin. "It doesn't involve you any more. I promise. This involves something I need the dragons to do. Just the dragons, and no one else."

"Quick! You all better fly!" Tooky said to the silver holding him.

"As I was saying," Kisith said to her, "a good spy needs to be a great actor, and I need you to set the scene."

"So are you wizards who change into dragons and draconians, or dragons and draconians who change into wizards?" Tooky finally had to ask.

"I sometimes wonder that, myself," Kisith said, tilting and scratching his head. "But you better not come back here, Tooky. Too many times, all I could eat was Kender stew. I would hate to think you're in one of my bowls."

"I'll keep him out of mischief," the silver dragon said.

"I can't wait to find grandpa Tasslehoff and tell him what I've done!" Tooky said.

All the dragons, and Kisith, too, rolled their eyes. Ever since the War of the Lance, every Kender in the world has claimed relations with the famous Tasslehoff Burrfoot. No doubt that was why he hasn't been heard of since the Chaos war. He must still be in hiding and got his friends to say he had been killed.

"Be sure to tell the others of our progress," the Sivak told them as they prepared to take flight, "but don't tell them where we are. Not yet."

"Like you said," the copper pointed out, "you can't hide something this big. But we'll tell them. We'll make them understand. We're looking forward to your next report."

"Maybe, you ought to consider this form, next time," Kisith suggested gesturing to himself. "It's less confining than being human and you get to keep the wings and tail. You already know how to use them. And—I wouldn't have to worry about teaching you how to sweat or fake exertion."

"I don't think we could bring ourselves to going that far," the bronze said, shuddering.

"Well, if you do consider it, let me know," he told them, clicking his scales. "I'll show you how this all works and you'll still need pointers on how to behave."



The Kapak draconian had just come on watch with a full cup of brew. When he took a mouthful, he saw them, and blew his drink over the wall. Five metallic dragons rising over the nearest ridge to fly away. The girls had been restless that morning and also had been wandering the battlements before dawn, when Thesik saw them and shouted. Dragonfear gripped him and he fell to his knees, but the effect soon left him and he blew the alarm.



When Slith and the others arrived at the cavern, they found Kisith kneeling, looking to be in shock.

"Kisith!" Slith shouted, shaking him by the shoulders. "Kisith! Come on! Snap out of it, man!"

"Man?" Kisith replied from far away. "Dragon. I'm a silver dragon. I'm dead. I'm a silver dragon. Dragon," he said, trailing off.

"Kisith!" Slith yelled, shaking him harder. "You're not dead. They didn't kill you! Wake up!"

"Why?" Kisith asked. "Why did they leave me alive?"

"We were hoping you could tell us," Granak said.

"Kisith!" Slith said, getting the sivak's attention. "What happened? Where did you go?"

"I-I-I had a dream--" Kisith said, his eyes glazing over. The sivak suddenly squeezed his eyes shut and started to convulse. "D-d-dr-dream--!" he said, forcing it out. "I-I h-had to f-f-find--find the dragon! I co-could-couldn't go on w-wi-with the dr-dreams! I had to END THEM!!" he shouted, grabbing Slith. All of the draconians were horrified by what Kisith said.

"Easy!" Granak said, helping to hold the terrified Sivak. "You're safe now!"

"I-I-I left the city," Kisith continued, looking at Granak, "looking for the dragon, the silver dragon, so I could end--end the dreams. But, when I left, I couldn't--couldn't feel. Which way? When I was home, I could feel--where, but--when I searched--I couldn't. I WAS LOST!" he screamed. Kisith shook for several minutes before regaining control.

Slith and the others didn't want to hear any more, but they were helpless to resist. They were under the full throes of sympathetic dragonfear that Kisith must have felt.

"I finally gave up, turned to come home," he continued, speaking to Slith. "As I got closer, I-I started--I could--feel them! Watching!

"I was--I saw the city, but--I-I-I turned--and there it was! Here! They were here! All of them!" Kisith whispered. His eyes glazed over again.

"Brass."

"Bronze."

"Copper."

"GOLD!" he shouted, shutting his eyes tight. Then they snapped open, in terror.

"Silver," he whispered so low they could barely hear it.

"Easy, Kisith!" Slith said. "We saw them! It's okay! They left! They're gone now!"

"No! No! NO! YOU'RE WRONG!" Kisith shouted, struggling to escape, but the other draconians helped hold him. "They're not gone! They're here! HERE! WATCHING US! Watching us! watching! Watching," he said, returning to a whisper.

"Yes," Slith said, surprised at the calmness of his own voice. "We know! But they're not here now. They stepped away! They wanted us to come here."

"Why?" Kisith asked, looking at him. "Why didn't they kill me?"

"We don't know," Slith replied.

"Who are they?" Kisith suddenly asked with surprising authority, and the others suddenly froze, their eyes glazing over.

"They are our parents," Granak and Gloth mechanically replied.

"What do they want?"

"They want to kill us," Granak replied, but Slith and Gloth's response was different.

"I--I don't know," they said.

"Why are they here?"

"They watch us," Granak and Gloth said.

Slith, however, struggled with his answer.

"Th-they l--l--lo--love--" But then the spell broke, and they shook off the effect.

Kisith had to spend a few moments to compose himself to resume the act.

"What happened?" Granak asked. "What did they do?"

"They looked at me," Kisith said, trying to restore the tremor in his voice. "They just looked at me. Then they left." Nothing more was said for several minutes.

"Come on," Slith finally said, shuddering. "I have no doubt they'll be back, but I don't think it will be this cave. But let's not take the chance. Everybody out," he ordered.

"I'm sorry, sir," Kisith said. "I suppose I'll be doing latrine duty for a few months."

"I don't think that'll be necessary," Slith said, slapping his shoulder. "There's nothing that I or anyone else can do that could be worse than what you've been through. But somehow--I don't think you're going to have as much trouble with your dreams," Kisith looked at him in astonishment. "You walked out to face your nightmares, and you won. You literally won! You're a braver lizard than me."

It didn't take much of an effort for Kisith to start crying. If only they knew, was all he needed to think.



"Welcome back from the dead!" Mitz softly said, taking his seat beside Kisith at the dinner table. He had been assigned to watch over Kisith for awhile. "Just do us all a favor and don't have any more nightmares any time soon. I don't want to wake up and find it's not a dream."

"It's good to have comrades like you!" Kisith said tears still welling in his eyes. He looked about the dinning hall and saw several draconians openly weeping. Having the dragons take off so publicly really shook them up. It made his heart ache even more for their plight.

A sudden commotion sounded through the gloom and doom atmosphere as the girls excitedly rushed in. They spotted Kisith and Mitz and sprinted for their table.

"Did you see them?" Fonrar asked, wild eyed.

"They were beautiful," the Sivak sisters said together.

"OF COURSE HE SAW THEM!" Mitz shouted, standing up. But Kisith grabbed Mitz's arm, and with his other hand, crushed the metal chalice he had been drinking from.

"It's okay," the Sivak quietly said. "Sit down, Mitz. Yes, they are beautiful," he said, smiling to the girls, a fresh wave of tears began flowing.

He couldn't wait for the next report he was going to write. Two giant leaps in as many days, and THEY got to see it for themselves. He had been watching the draconians under General Maranta for years, reporting their miniscule, but steady progress, step by step. Then, with the arrival of this new group, Kang's group, and especially these females he brought with him. He had to shake his head in wonder. Not even Paladine could've foreseen this. Or had he? Too bad the old fart was no longer around to ask.

This group of females were way ahead of everyone else, he concluded, but with Kang and his regiment right on their heels, and bringing the rest of them along. There were still several contingents of draconians out there, still lost to Takhisis, but he knew this effort was no longer a lost cause. The smoldering embers of hope have, this time, finally caught flame.

Kisith looked at his ruined cup and the little remaining drink. He stood, lifting it to salute them, then the others throughout the room.

"To the Lost Ones," he said, choking back his sobs. "May they soon find their way home." Setting his empty cup down, he smiled down at the puzzled Mitz and girls and left the table. And you guys may find it sooner than we think, he added to himself.

On his way out, he passed one of the mindless ones sitting at another table.

"Beautiful," he heard the man mutter.

Kisith couldn't resist patting the man on the shoulder in agreement before moving on.



With Tips of the Hat to: Babylon 5, Mission: Impossible, Alias Smith & Jones, Hogan's Heroes, Ghost Busters, & Doctor Who. I leave it to you figure out where they hide:D

I hope you enjoyed this and were as touched by reading it as I was by writing it. I love Kang and his troops :heart: :heartbeat :hugs: :wekiss: :inlove: & I just feel these guys deserve a break for once :cry: