The Hue of Dawn

Chapter-27 Nightmare

(for this chapter you might have to make your brain remember some events of The Color of Night for a scene here to make sense)

Deathbringer tried to go to sleep that night, but he couldn't.

What he had seen the other night, those weird gray eyes. It bothered him so.

He knew he had seen them somewhere else, and the fact that he couldn't remember annoyed the scales out of him.

The campfire light had made the strange eyes glow and stand out among the darkness, and when they were gone, Deathbringer had this weird feeling that they were after him.

He couldn't sleep that night, and when Glory finally got back from talking with Starflight, he had taken her under his wing and quietly sang until she fell asleep.

Her breathing and heartbeat had always soothed him and made him feel safe and loved.

But this time the feeling of being prey came back after him, and it was horrible.

He knew he hadn't been himself after that night. And he was sorry for it.

His own dragonets had stayed away from him, and Glory had been distant ever since he had first roared at her when she woke up in the morning.

Now that he finally had a chance to sleep, his instincts wouldn't let him.

Every shadow he saw, those silver eyes were watching him closely.

Deathbringer shut his eyes and held Glory closer to him.

She stirred but did not wake up, he thanked the moons for that.

Glory breathed steadily with a tiny smile on her face, and eventually Deathbringer felt himself fall into a deep slumber.

*

At first there was an eternal darkness, then images started flickering all over the place.

A flash of lightning.

Quickstrike lying helpless on a sandy beach, a burnt mark on her wing.

Dark wings appearing from the sky above.

Talons reaching for him with blood in their claws, victims of his assassin duties.

Lava. Lava everywhere his head turned.

Glory with white scales on the floor of the royal hut.

Destinyseeker crawling toward him.

Startoucher flying in the sky with an egg in her talons.

A RainWing dragonet with black scales popping out of an egg after Glory's blood landed on it.

Blood all over a sun time platform.

The cool touch of a blade slicing across his neck.

And then a lonely egg, sitting on a pile of leaves in Destinyseeker's hut.

And then another flash of lightning with the loudest thunder ever heard.

*

Deathbringer jolted awake and jumped to his feet in frantic fear.

His breathing was ragged and he had to take in deep breaths every other second.

His heart beat so hard and fast Deathbringer thought it would fly out from his chest.