Crystal Folly

A Flight to the Threat

As the group began to walk down to the main lobby, deep in conversation about where Xeno may be, Taylor flew back inside and ran into Arthur.

"I feel like you're gonna react the same way Stella did," Arthur said aloud, thinking she'd be surprised. Instead, it got him a burning smack in the face from her tail.

"Jeez, that's gotta sting," Ender muttered under his breath

"Flying in that storm was a close second to the dumbest things you've ever done, Arthur!" Taylor shouted, knowing it'd hurt everyone's ears at such close proximity. When he uncovered his ears, Taylor had managed to swing her tail again, this time aiming for his arms.

Guess I have no choice, Stella thought. She froze Taylor's tail moments before it would've connected to Arthur, making her shiver violently. "Now is not the time to be fighting! We have much bigger, crystal fish to fry," she told Taylor, glaring with a small fire in her eye. When she unthawed her tail and prepared to swing it again, several black scales began to appear around Stella's hands and neck.

Oh, jeez, Ender thought, Taylor's really worked her up now. She may have a disadvantage to Taylor now, but in a drawn out fight, Stella's got some serious endurance, even if it's a fire dragon she's fighting. He reached out to her to try to calm her down, but the instant he touched her, the air around them became frigid. Arthur, who was still standing there, walked outside to warmer air.

"Xeno, remember? We need to take care of him, guys," Johann called out, which broke everyone's concentration. "Where were the cameras? I know you've been trained with specific locations when it comes to minute details, Stella." He looked patient, but felt the need to rush headfirst into a battlefield they had no idea about.

Before she answered, all of the black scales had faded away and she no longer had the cold flame in her eye. "It's honestly hard to tell with this one. It looks like somewhere cold, but I can't be entirely sure. It isn't anywhere in the United States for sure...wait a sec." She tried to remember the exact details before continuing. They weren't in or near a desert, that's good. I'm seriously hoping it isn't Finland, but that's what my mind's compass is telling me.

"It's Finland," Ender answered before Stella got the chance to. "We need to get on a plane going to there before it's too late and he moves. If he moves again, he'll probably stay dormant for who knows how long before trying anything else." As he was finishing his last sentence, he grabbed his travel bag and began heading out the door. "We may have a ride or two, but everyone else is running."

As everyone was walking out, they noticed that Sonui had pulled her truck closer to the entrance of the hotel, letting them know she'd be transportation to the nearest airport for some of them. Arthur was already in the passenger seat, talking to Sonui about more artists.

"Hey, sorry for ending it short, but we kinda need to go now. If you'll, y'know, take Luna, Milo and I," Johann interrupted, trying to be as kind as possible about it. Sonui looked as if he didn't need to ask and unlocked the doors to let them in.

"I guess we're flying, then?" Ender asked Stella, who seemed to be prepping herself. "I've only seen the scales of your dragon form, so this'll be a surprise." Once she finished, she asked that he moved away in case something came out mid-transformation and landed where he previously was.

"Hey, there's still some room in here for you, Sadie," Sonui called, "if you don't feel comfortable riding on a dragon." The offer was quickly accepted and Sadie set her bow in the back to give them as much room as possible. As she was closing the door, Stella was just about finishing her transformation.

Never thought I'd see Stella with black and navy scales as a dragon, Ender pondered. Her scales aren't even that dark when she's not in that form. "I feel like I should be ready to understand the dragon language," he shouted while climbing up Stella's back.