Moonborn

The Hideout

Evelyn stepped forward after Seraphine, flooded with awe. Snow formed a light crust on the ground, only distantly related to the deep snowdrifts and oppressive cold on the other side of the hidden portal. The sparkling white hills spread literally to the edge of the horizon, where they culminated in a single cliff. The air on the edge was covered in the nebulae's mist, deep blue with sparkling specks shifting constantly within it. After it, nothing was visible. Looking around, Evelyn saw no sign of the stunning Mt. Neverest or a geographical counterpart, and after a moment it dawned on her that this world wasn't tied to the same landscape as the mountain, only the portal.

Turning around, she saw the two giant trees that had served as guardians to the hideout. Behind them lay an entire complex of what Evelyn assumed to be dragon and riders' quarters. They seemed enormous, sprawling almost to the other side of the world. Tall trees stood between different sections of the quarters, with a light dusting of snow that turned them silver and white. At first glance, they seemed to be cut in half, but after a longer look Evelyn realized with awe that they were simply so tall that they hit the 'roof' of the world. The only sign that the trees' top tiers still existed in another world, if not many other worlds, was the sprinkling of nebulae gold where the trees disappeared, hovering like a cloud on their upper branches.

"Evelyn! Have you frozen back there?" Seraphine yelled at her, already halfway to the complex.

With a start, Evelyn searched frantically for her dragonet, only to find her mind enveloped by excitement. After a few uneasy seconds in which Evelyn caught a glimpse of the world through her dragonet's eyes, she found her on Seraphine's back, enjoying her ride.

Laughing at her joy, Evelyn jogged after the pair. The air was light, and the sun bright, and she wondered idly if that was due to the 'full protections' Marvin and Seraphine had mentioned earlier. She knew that the Compound hadn't been on full protections for many years, not even when she had been in training, when there hadn't been a serious conflict to take care of. The attack on the Compound had shown just how bad the situation was. If the malcovs had been able to transport directly into the camp, it was no wonder that Aldebar had wanted Evelyn to leave as soon as possible; not only would she still be in danger, but the lure of Luna's presence would likely put the whole Compound in danger as well.  Hopefully, with their secret departure and a little bit of luck, their movement hadn't been detected.

Close up, the cabins were decrepit and falling apart. Each one was comprised of a central, narrow house surrounded on its polar ends by two barn-like structures, probably the shared quarters of two riders and their dragons' pens, respectively.

There seemed to be fifty or so identical cabins. Beneath the rough carpet of snow, Evelyn could see the remnants of a stone path as well as overgrown shrubbery and trees around the cabins.

She found Seraphine by what was likely the least derelict cabin, scouting out her own quarters. The doors to the dragon pen were made of wood, like the rest of the structure, but they seemed close to falling off their hinges. Inside, the floor was covered with fresh hay, and a door in the middle of the far wall opened into the riders' sections.

"Seraphine?" Evelyn asked cautiously, for the dragoness was standing in the middle of the pen and apparently not moving. "Are you alright?"

A long moment passed in which she didn't answer, before she finally turned her head in Evelyn's direction. Evelyn was surprised to see her eyes glowing a golden-orange.

"Hmm?" she said vaguely as her eyes slowly faded back to normal. "Oh, I'm fine, just zoned out for a moment. Are you sure you're okay?"

Evelyn was a bit taken aback by the question. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

Seraphine's only perplexing response was a deep sigh.

—

 "Progresssss?"

"My lord, the safe-world that the dragonet is hidden in has been located, and I have arranged forces to storm it at your command."


"Good, good, Ebenezer. I mussssst have that dragonet by the new moon if it issss truly to become a Dark One. Sssssstorm the sssssafe-world tonight, and take everyone alive. My fisherman will asssssissssst you in gaining accccesssss."

"But, my lord, with all respect, we have enough power to force the way open ourselves."

"Dear Ebenezer, if forcccccce were mossssst ssssuitable, I would have you usssse it, and then we would leave tracccccesssss large enough for all our sssssecretsssss to be found. No. Let my fisherman open it dissscreetly, and the Wingsssss will be baffled assss to how we got in."

"As you wish, my lord."

"Do not fail me, Ebenezer."