Acceptance and Recovery

by sincarnation

Chapter 3 - Uproar (Part 2)

Dragonlands 10:35am, 8th of Hearthfire, Two Month’s into Artemis’s Journey, The Crucible

“Look, I get what you’re trying to do, but it isn’t going well. Just order them to change, they cannot disobey a Dragon Lord’s Decree,” groaned Torch exasperated. This wasn’t the first time he had tried to help her with the transition, but his daughter insisted on doing things the hard way.

“No dad, that was your way. Not mine. There is no point if I force it on them, they have to see the value for themselves,” explained Ember equally tired of having this same conversation. “Look it’s not easy bu-“

“DRAGON LORD EMBER!”

“Oh great, just what I needed,” groaned Ember as she put on her best look of confident leader. “What is it, uhh Thorn right? You're one of Garble’s?”

“Yes m’am. Dragon Lord Ember you have to come quick. Some giant wolf thing is torturing Garble until he gets to see you, PLEASE COME SAVE HIM,” pleaded Thorn the first to leave and first to arrive.

“Oh no, Garble is in trouble. Guess I better go save him, as fast as I can,” responded Ember sarcastically as she looked skeptically at the dragon in front of her. “You sure this isn’t another obvious attempt to get the scepter from me? I swear if it is I’m going to ki-”.

“Wolf monster? Is he standing on two legs? Bright green eyes?” asked Torch suspiciously.

“YES! He just appeared out of nowhere and threatened to kill us for doing a raid.”

“Didn’t I tell you to stop with those stupi-“

“Where?” growled Torch in a tone neither of them had heard before.

“N-near the northern volcano, a few miles from the base.”

Before he had finished Torch had already taken off, he had heard all he needed. Despite his size, he was going fast enough to be certain that Ember and Thorn wouldn’t be able to catch up. He had business to take care of with the Wolf King.

“What the? Don’t just sit there gawking, take me to him!” ordered Ember.

“B-but”

“NOW!”

Dragonlands 11:00am, 8th of Hearthfire, Two Month’s into Artemis’s Journey, Volcano Base

Chrysalis watched in horror, as the teenage dragon writhed on the ground in agony. While she was no stranger to using violence or threats of it, but even she thought this was excessive. The screams started the moment his claw made contact with his scales, and they hadn’t stopped since Artemis had drawn the intricate rune between the dragon’s wings.

“That’s the worst place to put it,” chuckled Artemis. “You can’t reach it yourself and it’s not a section of your body you can readily lose. There are two ways to stop the agony for good, either I die or you do. But you’re a strong one yo-“

“You laugh after that?” paled Chrysalis. “I’ve done awful things for my hive, but it was just that, for my hive.”

“Of course, strong leaders do what they must for their followers. What’s your point?”

“I, no WE fed on love only because we had to, and I acted with the best interests of my hive. What you just did was, it was everything you told him not to do. Cruelty for the sake of cruelty, you’re a monster.”

“Am I? Was it? What do you know of dragons? Or myself for that matter? Why would I,” trailed Artemis as he heard tremendous wing beats approaching quickly.

He squinted towards the sun and could see a small black outline growing larger every second. Even in the distance he could tell it was a larger dragon, but it wasn’t anything he wasn’t expecting. His body shuddered in anticipation as he prepared himself for a fight, he was a little rusty but this would help get some of the kinks out.

“BUCK YEAH, I’VE GOT IT!”

“VINYL!? Is everything ok?”

“Oh uhhh, yeeaaah. Nope, no problems here. I just had a stroke of genius and figured out what my next album was going to be about.”

“Thank Luna, you’re alright. You caught me off guard, but I’ll talk to you when I return. I’m about to fight the Dragon Lord.”

“Yeah sorry about th- WAIT WHAT?! NO INTERNATIONAL INCID-”

Artemis had already blocked Vinyl out, he would need to focus all his attention on the Dragon Lord. As he turned his attention back towards the rapidly approaching dragon, a horrible realization struck him. He wasn’t slowing down as he approached the ground, he was speeding up.

“Buck me!” grunted Artemis as he realized the danger of the incoming impact. With one motion he grabbed Chrysalis and Garble, and he threw them into the away from the area. He hoped she would at the very least use her wings to cushion their impact, but it was better than the alternative he thought as he braced for impact.

There was a thunderous crash, and the world went white. For the briefest of moments he felt nothing, oblivion. Unburdened by the weight of responsibility and guilt, he felt at peace. He wasn’t naïve enough to hope for/question his own death, but he did wonder if he would ever reach this state again. His peace was interrupted when he began hearing a muted ringing, it was the only warning he got when a wave of pain washed over him returning color to the world.

“Good. Glad you’re alive,” grunted Torch. “For a moment I was worried I had killed you, and I wasn’t finished with you yet.”

“As if I could be killed so easily,” chuckled Artemis grimly as he lay flat on his back in the crater. He regenerated from most wounds at an astonishing speed, but the impact had actually fractured or broken more bones than he had expected. He wasn’t too worried, they would mend even stronger. Unfortunately that would take a bit of time, likely more time than Torch was going to give him.

“No, I suppose not. You always were a tough bastard,” grunted Torch as he towered over Artemis. “Shame really, death was your best way out!” He roared as be brought his foot down, intended to crush Artemis before he could repair himself.

Artemis steeled himself for the impact as he focused his regeneration on his legs. It would delay his other injuries, but he needed to be able to dodge to avoid taking any more damage.

Without the same momentum, this impact wasn’t comparable to the first. However a few broken ribs forced him to regulate his breathing otherwise he risked injuring something important. His bones creaked in protest, he could feel the cracks in his arms branching out beneath the pressure. Just as quickly as the pressure had come down, it disappeared as he Torch lift his foot preparing to stomp down again.

Artemis used that moment to kip up and roll towards Torch’s heel. Artemis had fought dragons long before Torch, and typically they had some of the same flaws, typically arrogance. The larger elder dragons are typically used to fighting things smaller than them, but very few of them are accustomed to fighting things just as strong or stronger. Few dragons were willing to admit something could be smaller than them and stronger; long ago Torch was one of those in denial. Artemis knew that Torch wouldn’t be able see him roll out from beneath his foot, and he was going to use it to his advantage.

Artemis used the cover of Torch’s own leg to hide as he gathered strength in his legs. With one push he shot himself towards the back of the dragon’s knee, knowing a solid blow to a tense joint could fell most creatures. He lashed out with as much strength has he could muster, delivering a brutal blow to the joint. To his surprise, the impact towards Torch’s knee didn’t cause him to buckle enough to collapse. He could tell Torch was off balance, but he wasn’t falling. He was confused for only a brief moment as a great rush of wind answered his question and sent him hurtling towards the ground.

Torch’s reflexes allowed him to use his wings to compensate for the sudden loss of balance. It was almost funny, how different things were now from before, and it only took hundreds of years of experience and a bit of humility. After acknowledging and respecting the strength of his opponent, he could see a broader range of possibilities for counter attacks and defensive options. Knowing and having fought Artemis in the past helped immensely, but he found it strange that though it had been so long Artemis’s fighting style had barely changed. Before he remembered having to attempt understand an entirely new style every encounter.

“No time to worry about that,” thought Torch. “If he wanted me to fall to the ground, all he had to do was ask.”

Artemis watched as Torch tucked his wings in and began to fall. Still mid-air from the kick, his maneuverability was limited and Torch was falling fast.

“Oh well, buck me”

Dragonlands 11:20am, 8th of Hearthfire, Two Month’s into Artemis’s Journey, The Volcano Base

Ember made little attempts to hide her frustration with Thorn. She would’ve arrived far sooner if he hadn’t been slowing her down. She had never seen her father take off so quickly, and she couldn’t help but question why? The most likely answer was more chilling than she was willing to admit, not many creatures had the audacity to attack the dragons in their homeland much less challenge the Dragon Lord. Part of her feared this was because word that her father had stepped down was spreading.

“THERE!” shouted Thorn out of breath. "THEY! ARE!"

“SUBMIT!”

“I’m Dragon Lord, I’ve got this,” whispered Ember to herself as she descended leaving Thorn behind.

She couldn’t see who her father was talking to, but she was surprised to see him lounging in the middle of a large crater. It was strange; it had been a long time since she had seen such a smug grin on his face.

“How much longer can you go with so little air?”

“Dad what are you doing?”

“Ember? You got here faster than I expected.”

“Where is the wolf monster?”

“Don’t worry I got this one, sweetie. Now please leave before you get hu-“ yelped Torch as he arched his back with wince. “YOU’RE GONNA HAVE TO HIT HARDER THAN THAT!”

As Torch rammed his back into the ground, he was surprised at the lack of resistance. He was even more surprised when he felt himself being dragged by the tail, but before he could lash it out he was thrown backwards towards the forest. Instinctively he curled up to protect his core, knowing Artemis wouldn’t let up the pressure. Just as he expected Artemis had moved quickly to follow the chase, but before a blow could be struck a blue blur sped between them.

“ENOUGH!” roared Ember as she stared down Artemis’s stopped first.

“Out of the way girl, this is between me and the Dragon Lord.”

“Good, you’re looking at her. What do you want?”

“This girl? Dragon Lord?” thought Artemis dumbstruck. “Torch! Explain!”

“YOU DON’T GET TO SAY THAT! YOU’RE THE ONE WHO HAS SOME EXPLAINING TO DO!” roared Torch as he sat back up. “YOU MISSED MY GREAT TRIUMPH, YOU MISSED MY CORONATION, YOU MISSED THE LOVE OF MY LIFE, YOU MISSED THE BIRTH OF MY DAUGHTER, YOU MISSED THE DEATH OF MY LOVE, AND YOU MISSED HER CORONATION,” Torch finished with a motion towards Ember before sighing. “You missed everything mate. Where in Tartarus have you been?”

Artemis was stunned as guilt and anger crept into him. Luna had been locked away for his absence, and Celestia too guilt-ridden/boring to do anything. While he and Torch never had to proclaim themselves best friends, they were rivals, and fought often enough to trust and treat each other like brothers. It never even occurred to him what he might’ve missed anything more than Torch being “crowned”. Yet another thing he had missed".

“Tartarus.”

“I’m sorry, my hearing must not be so good anymore,” chuckled Torch confused. “What was that?”

“Tartarus, Torch. I was imprisoned in Tartarus this entire time.”

“How?!”

“You were right, Celestia betrayed me. You warned me, and I didn’t think it possible.”

“I-I’m actually really sorry to hear that mate, what about Luna?”

“She’s fine now, she didn’t know about it either. She returned from banishment shortly before I broke out.”

“Banishment?! WRY’KIN! When did all this happen?”

“This is why we need to be involved with the world Dad,” groaned Ember ignoring her father’s ancient swear. “Also who is this?”

“Aye, you might be right about that,” grunted Torch with a frown. “This is Artemis, King of the Wolves, Ruler of Lupinia, and basically your Uncle. I didn’t think he was dead, just an ass for disappearing.”

“Ruler of Lupinia? Uhhh Dad, hate to break it to you but,”

“Lupinia is no more; I am a King without subjects. The wolves are all but extinct.”

A roar unlike any either of them had heard recently erupted from Torch as he threw his head back unleashing a massive jet of flame. Though they all recognized it for what it was, a war cry. Artemis saw Ember retreat back a step, Dragon Lord or not Torch was still one of strongest dragons and his fury was not something be taken lightly. Though he couldn't help but appreciate that Torch mirrored his own rage.

“Who?” growled Torch with fire in his eyes. “Who did it, Artemis? The full fury of the dragons will destroy them, the skies will rain fire the likes of which they cannot imagine.”

“No, they won’t,” responded Ember quickly sternly before Artemis could respond. “I am Dragon Lord, and the dragons are not going to war.”

“Bagh like I need them, we’re more than enough to raze them to the ground.”

“No, you are the former Dragon Lord. Your actions reflect on our race almost as much as mine.”

“Are you ordering me not to Ember?” growled Torch in a dangerous tone.

“No, because of all Dragons I would hope you wouldn’t try to undermine my authority as Dragon Lord. But I will do whatever it takes to ensure the safety and survival of the dragons, including forbidding you from acting without my consent if it comes to that. If you want to go start a war, you’re going to have to pry the scepter from me.” Ember was calm but resolved even in the face of her enraged father.

“It’s alright Torch, It’s enough to see you just as enraged as I was,” sighed Artemis trying to prevent Torch from making the wrong decision.

“No, it’s not. Whoever did this needs to be made an example of, teach the whole world a lesson about crossing us,” grunted Torch as he looked at his daughter. “If it were me I would make my power known so that no one would forget it, but she has other ideas about friendship.”

“Yeah I do, you both did things your way and look where it got you. The building resentment meant that as soon as they were sure he was gone, the Griffons took their revenge, while we were so isolated and aloof your best friend’s country was wiped out and you didn’t even notice!” snapped Ember as she looked between the two. “I’m not saying your way was bad, but both had some pretty bad consequences.”

“So what would you do?”

“Something different at the very least, it’s never too late to try a different approach. Just because you’ve done something one way for centuries, doesn’t mean it is the right or best way.” explained Ember. “Look at me, up until now it was always the biggest and strongest dragon that was Dragon Lord. That’s not a bad thing, but neither is change.”

“Wouldn’t you want revenge?”

“Of course, but instead of stomping in and turning the land into a burning hellscape I might try something more subtle. Turnabout is fair play so why not try to plant the seeds of rebellion among their poor oppressed lower class and use the ensuing chaos to conquer them and retake your land. Or you could try the friendship route, its up to you.”

Both Artemis and Torch were stunned. It wasn’t a plan they hadn’t heard before, it just wasn’t what they were expecting from her. Though Artemis did notice that Chrysalis had been listening the entire time, but hopefully she didn’t take that suggestion too seriously.

“What? I said try something different, not give up on your revenge. Just because I think that the dragons should make more friends and take some lessons from the other races, doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten that we’re dragons.”

“THAT’S MY GIRL!” bellowed Torch as he snatched Ember into a warm embrace. “This is but the first of many trials as Dragon Lord. You stood up to me, and showed you are strong in your convictions. I’m so proud of you!”

“She’s going to be a great leader, Torch. I know she didn’t get her brains from you though, her mother must’ve been something else,” chuckled Artemis sadly. “I’m sorry missed so much.”

“Don’t worry about it Artemis,”

A roar of pain broke the silence as Garble tumbled into the crater, writhing in pain. Artemis watched him and looked towards Ember with high expectations; the competition would do them both a world of good.

“Oh, right. Garble,” sighed Ember flatly. “I was called out here because I was told you were torturing Garble. That true? Why? I mean he probably deserved it, but I feel I should ask as Dragon Lord.”

“I needed his lackies to get Torch in a hurry, and I saw potential in him despite his idiocy,” explained Artemis as he pointed teenage dragon. “He has the potential to be a great leader as well; he just needed a kick in the right direction. Torture is a strong word, but somewhat accurate. I broke a few bones to brace him for the pain he is feeling now, but they will mend stronger and he will be better for the experience.”

“What did you carve into him?” questioned Chrysalis as she slid down the crater walls landing next to Artemis.

“Ugh a changeling,” grimaced Torch.

“Ugh a dumbass,” countered Chrysalis

“This,” said Artemis plainly as he ignored them, turning his back and flexing to reveal a rune of scar tissue in-between his shoulder blades. “This rune teaches one the cost of cruelty; it makes the bearer experience all the pain they’ve caused others. So right now the agony he is feeling is all the pain and suffering he has inflicted on every living creature. The first time is the worst because it’s going to have to catch-up to present time, then it will stop.”

“Why?” asked Ember confused and slightly disturbed.

“He could be a ruler, and the harsher rulers especially need to know consequences of their actions. He will awake from this and be a kinder leader or he will endure and be far stronger for it. Either way he will be better for the experience, and if he does go the cruel route it will likely drive him to seek me out someday. In which case I could end him if need be, but until then the competition will be good for you.”

“Wait, how long have you had that? You felt everything you inflicted on others? EVERYTHING?!” asked Torch incredulously.

“Not in that moment, I activate mine every few years, but I felt it eventually. I got it shortly after met Luna and attempted to mellow out. That’s why my kills became more quick and painless. That first one, that was something else,” chuckled Artemis.

“Metal” said Ember impressed.

“Well what are you doing now? You staying? Dragons rarely throw feasts but this might be a special occasion.”

“Save the feast for later, we’ll do it when I return. Right now I’m a wanderer in search of himself, and when I find him I’ll return both home and here.”

“And you’re traveling with her because? I’m sure you could have better company, like Luna. Bring her around next time.”

“I don’t often leave creatures to die on their own, and despite what she has done I thought we might get along. I’m a monster though, so probably not. And Luna? Luna is why I’m on this journey.”

“Ah kicked out? I understand entirely, one time Bris kicked me out f-,”

“I wasn’t kicked out, we couldn’t agree on what to do about the Griffons. So I left to figure out what I wanted.”

“Oh never mind then, well whatever you do you have my support,” beamed Torch nudged his daughter forward.

“Whatever it is, I hope to be able to put the full support of the dragons behind you, that’s not a promise. Whatever you do make sure your friends and allies can back you up on it and feel good about it,” smiled Ember.

“I’ll keep it in mind, but before we go,” smiled Artemis as he concentrated some magic into a small ball above his claw. “You are the daughter of my rival and dear friend, he would give his life for you without hesitation. As such I would do the same, he is family and so are you. Would you accept my blessing?”

“Are you serious Artemis?” questioned Torch surprised and a little touched. “You would offer that to her?”

“What is it?”

“It’s a pledge. If you accept, it’s a promise that he will do everything in his power to protect you. I’ve seen him rip armies apart, intervene in conflicts between other countries, consequences be damned to save someone he had marked. It’s not something he offers often, I would accept it.”

Artemis wasn’t sure what she was thinking, he just watched as she turned from Torch to the ball of magic, and back out to the countryside. She spared Garble a look at one point before she settled on an answer.

“Thank you for the offer, but I have to say no.”

“B-but are you sure?” questioned Torch. “It would make su-“

“Yes, I’m sure. I appreciate the offer, but I can’t have you and my dad as a safety net in case I mess up. I have to be accountable for my actions; it will make me a stronger and better leader.”

“Hmm she already recognizes Garble as a threat and is seeking to better herself, she is nothing like Torch was. But maybe that’s for the best,” thought Artemis. “Very well, I can respect that. Good luck Dragon Lord”

Closing his fist, he turned to walk away not waiting for Chrysalis. She had stayed quiet since his comment about being a monster, but this time he was ok with that. He had hoped in her listening to their conversation she had learned a bit more about him, and maybe eventually she would open up more. Until then he would be content, both Ember and Torch had given him plenty to think about. He had no idea where he was going next, but it didn't matter until he heard a deep voice echo through his mind.

"I stir, but I will awaken in six of your months. Summit then, Sine Fine Tempus."

Comments

[sincarnation]

8766010
For the title pattern? Not intentionally if it is haha
I have seen nothing of Star Trek so anything that seems like a reference is unintentional
Appreciate the comment and love man

[Alfaridwan Setiabudi]

More please