Draco held Ember's claw as he sat beside her bed, their daughter gurgling as she played with a small ladybug plushie. Dawn's tail wriggled out from her blankets and swung around as she learned to move her limb. Her mother reached her tail around to play with her's, and Dawn giggled as she wrestled with the larger limb. Celestia and King Draco stood beside the new parents as they watched their grandchild laugh. The Elements stood around the bed with Moon as well. Each of the mares squealed and cooed at Dawn as she played with the ladybug.
"Aww, she's so cuuuute!" Pinkie giggled.
Dawn laughed as she reached out to Pinkie, and she giddily giggled as she looked to the couple. They nodded with a laugh, and Draco gestured for her to come closer. Pinkie hopped over and gently took Dawn from her mother and cradled her gently, giggling as the small dragoness grabbed her bubblegum pink mane.
"She has Draco's eyes!" Rarity excitedly pointed out.
"And Ember's form," Draco chuckled, just before she lightly elbowed him in his side. "But she does look like you. Right?"
"Definitely," Rainbow laughed. "I mean, it'd be weird if she looked like you."
The others laughed, and Draco rolled his eyes playfully. "Yeah, imagine Ember with my build."
"Draco!" Ember laughed, smacking the back of his head with her tail.
As they laughed, the door opened, and Urishana walked in. "I'm glad to see you all," she smiled. "Reku'un, your daughter has visitors."
Draco rose a brow, counting everypony, and King Draco, to make sure they were all present. Urishana stepped away from the door, and Derekosh and Jaqeluu entered. Draco could see the ponies grow uncomfortable with their presence, especially Celestia. King Draco seemed fine, and Ember was… alright. When the two giants walked in, Dawn sniffed gently, then reached out to them and laughed. The new uncles smiled as they came closer, kneeling down to look at their niece.
"She's beautiful," Jaqeluu said happily, offering a sphere of energy for Dawn to play with.
Derekosh kept silent, but he still kept smiling. The others eased up when they saw them act lovingly to the new dragoness. But Dawn began fussing when she reached out to Derekosh, wriggling softly in Pinkie's hooves. Derekosh slowly adjusted his hands to carry the tiny hatchling, who was nibbling on her own tail. Jaqeluu glanced at her small wings, noticing how much more curved the scales at the tips of her wings were. He gradually spread her wing out from her blanket, and she cooed as she tried moving it.
"She has our mothers wings," Jaqeluu told them softly, carefully showing Dawn's pair. "All Nera'ak, including your own species, have a sharper joint structure in the wing. Our mother's wings were shaped to be gentle… just like hers."
"Dawn," Draco said, walking closer to them. "Her name is Dawn."
Derekosh chuckled, lifting the hatchling up and causing her to laugh. "It's a wonderful name for her," he softly said. The longer he looked at her, the more his eyes watered until he couldn't keep them at bay.
He gave Dawn to Jaqeluu before going over to the wall and running his hands through his hair, wiping away his tears away from their view. Jaqeluu went back over to Ember and placed Dawn back in her mothers arms. The others were looking to Derekosh for some indication as to what he was feeling. The most he did was glance to Ember and smile before walking outside.
"What's wrong with him?" Applejack questioned. Jaqeluu sighed as he turned to her.
"To a Loki'irian, it's a miracle to live to see your siblings create a family," Jaqeluu admitted, shocking them all. "Of course, younger warriors see their elder siblings' family, but it also means you have a descendant… you can die and have your family's name live on."
King Draco and Ember understood better than the ponies, keeping silent while the Elements all spoke about how awful and cruel it sounded. "Girls," Draco said, gaining their attention. "We're a warrior race… and we need as many men to fight without worrying about dying and having their family forsaken with them."
"Reku'un," Jaqeluu harshly scolded. He turned to the others and sat down as he exhaled deeply. "The day that our world, Loki'ir, was taken… Derekosh watched his own love… perish."
The room went silent, save for Dawn's cooing and occasional fusses.
"He… he and Jerosh… and I… lost the women we cared about… but Derekosh's wife… was pregnant," he whispered, running his hand over his mark. "He wanted a family. It was something he was eager to have and he was far more committed than any of us… but they're gone… and we will never be able to love again."
Draco placed his hand on Jaqeluu's shoulder. "Their deaths won't be in vain," he assured him quietly. "Things are going to change."
"How?" Jaqeluu questioned angrily. "How are we supposed to make sure they haven't died in vain?"
Draco sighed, having hoped he wouldn't have to tell him in front of the others. "We're bringing the fight here."
Everypony and dragon, and Jaqeluu, gasped. "Draco… what are you talking about?" Celestia demanded.
Draco stood tall, taking a deep breath before he faced his mother. "If we're going to have a chance of taking them down… we have to fight them now, and we have to face them here."
"Reku'un we cannot put their lives in danger!" Jaqeluu exclaimed, turning his brother around.
"Their lives are already in danger!" Draco retorted. "We cannot sit here and wait for them to come and get us, and we damn well can't go after them!"
"Draco, they'll destroy everything we have!" King Draco said, walking up to him and snarling.
"Why would you even suggest fighting in Equestria?!" Luna bellowed.
"Draco, this is insane, even for you," Moon said.
"ENOUGH!" Draco shouted. "Enough! We can win! I know we can! This isn't a matter of fighting them all at once! I know how to destroy their world!"
Jaqeluu's eyes widened, and he backpedalled slowly. "What are you talking about? We haven't come into contact with their homeworld since the 235th Makti."
"Their portals are two-way thresholds," Draco said, turning to his family. "They'll throw whatever they have left to finish me. If we can funnel them in to a single battlefield, we can find the portal to their homeworld. We use the Vegdor to tear it apart and destroy a portion of their army, and make sure we can wipe out the rest without having more come."
Jaqeluu was silent, thinking over the plan and working out kinks he knew his brother had already thought of. "But we don't have many warriors to hold off an attack long enough to find the portal," he argued.
Draco nodded knowingly, then turned to face his mother and soon to be father-in-law. "We can't do this by ourselves," he told them. "But this isn't just our fight anymore. This is every and any race's fight. Which is why… I need the five nations to ally for this fight."
King Draco, Celestia, and Luna were shocked from his statement. "Draco, the Minotaurs and Diamond Dogs won't cooperate like us," King Draco said.
"They'll cooperate," Draco chuckled, his expression turning bitter as he thought back to those in the halls. "When they know what we're facing, they'll have to if they want to live."
"You're going to scare them?" Celestia asked, shocked that her son was suggesting to intimidate entire nations. "Draco, this isn't how we solve this!"
"Draco, this won't work," Ember told him. He clenched his jaw as he heard his lover join the others. "Please… we'll all die… We can't throw ourselves at them like we stand a chance. They have weaponry and machinery we could never create. And even with your people, they're practically in the trillions."
Her tail touched his arm, the end coiling around as a sign of comfort.
"Draco…"
"…"
"…"
"I know that you're all scared." Draco turned and walked closer to Ember, her tail slowly moving away from his arm. "And I understand why. This is the biggest and most evil thing we've ever faced, and knowing that even my kind can't take them on diminished most ponies' hopes."
He held Ember's claw, looking to Dawn as she sniffled and watched him.
"But we can win." He held her claw tightly and looked into her eyes. "We can mass an army that this planet's never seen. With the help of every griffon, minotaur, dragon, pony, and diamond dog, we can make and arm a legion that will give those bastards a run for their money. And if… WHEN, we wipe them out, we can finally be free of this whole war."
Draco gritted his teeth and exhaled softly, looking to his mother, aunt, and King Draco.
"Either we wait here to die, or we take a chance at destroying their homeworld and ridding the galaxy," Draco said to them, turning to face Moon and the girls. "When that portal opens, we'll be ready for them. We'll make them fight for every inch of land they want to destroy. And when we blast that dark world apart, we'll wipe them out. We'll be done. We'll win the war of all wars. That's why I want to do this. We need to stop cowering at the sight of them and fight." He looked to the rulers present. "I won't make any of you fight." Draco glanced at Jaqeluu. "And I won't make you listen. But I'm going to ask one question."
…
…
…
"Do you want to hide and wait to die… or would you rather die for others to know true peace?"