A Dragon’s Time: Chapter 2

 Chapter 2

“But why are you doing this!?” Ed’ans mother’s voice was growing even more frantic.

“Because it could be the entire future of Crizam.”

“How?” his mother turned away, her voice quivering. Ed’an could tell his father was getting irritated; his brow furrowed, and eyes starting to become slits of anger.

“Everybody would depend on me,” he hissed malevolently. “And they wouldn’t have any dangerous powers, just waiting to strike us down.” Ed’ans father started to circle his mother calmly, finally settling on the other side of her, closest to Ed’an.

Ed’an still couldn’t understand what they were talking about.

“But we are the only dragon tribe that have these powers,” Mrs. Time pleaded.

“Everyone has the essence of the elders, but not everybody is granted the ability to use it,” Mr. Time explained. “So if the Elders decide to give other dragons the power  that we have, they will be protected from the darkness that comes with it.”

“So you will do this to everyone? including us?!” Mrs. Time cried.

“No, we, us, should be the only ones blessed by the Elders. We deserve to have powers, we deserve to be special,” Mr. Time emphasized this, flaring his wings, making him seem like he was three times his size.

“You mean, ‘you deserve’ to have powers ‘you deserve’ to be special,” Ed’an’s mother started using everything he said against him.

Mr. Time started to get very quiet.

Mrs. Time stepped back, as if she was afraid of him.

“Oh. I know. How would you like to be the first test subject?” Mr. Time growled his voice having an echo of something else that wasn’t him. Ed’an stepped forward to the cave entrance leading to the main cave, his eyes narrowing.

“WHAT?! NO!” Mrs. Time gasped. Ed’ans eyes widened as he realized what was happening. Ed’ans father had begun to stalk towards Ed’ans mother, his malevolent eyes locked on her horrified face. 

There was something about how his father moved and spoke, it was like he was something else entirely. Mrs. Time was backed to the wall.

Mr. Time bent to her ear and whispered loudly more of his voice becoming that menacing echo, “You doubt me, don’t you? seeing that you don’t trust me, you will be the first test subject.”

Ed’an needed to do something he couldn’t just stand there so he walked forward until he was a wing length away from his parents.

 “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” Ed’an growled, stepping into the cave. He knew that this was his father, but it was like something else was in control.

“Ah, I knew someone was spying on us,” his father hissed, his voice becoming an echo of something sinister. Ed’ans mother looked even more frightened now that he was in the room with them. Some of Ed’an’s courage deflated.

“What were you talking about!?” Ed’an said with his teeth bared, and wings extended, he looked just about his fathers size.

 “Interesting. Oh, you haven’t told him yet, have you? Seeing that you tell those fantastical stories, I’m surprised you haven’t told him that one,” Mr. Time said, leaning to look behind Ed’an to see his mother. She shrunk back, becoming smaller than Ed’an. It was like she knew something that his father knew. Ed’an turned around to face his mother who had stood back up. 

“ Well?” Ed’an said, turning back and forth to look at both his mother and father. “No more secrets,” he said. The thing in his father’s facial expression was unreadable. 

“Fine,” Mrs. Time sighed, and she began her story. “A long, long, time ago, during the time of the Flarewings, there was a dragon, called Shirden Time. At that time there was a war going on between the Hivewings and the Flarewings. The Flarewings fought bravely. But then, in the middle of the ongoing battle, they disappeared overnight. It was like they were wiped off the continent, no trace of them was left. The dragons of Crizam were badly outnumbered, since most of their army consisted of Flarewings. But Shirden Time kept fighting on, and he was one of the few timewings that had joined the war. The war, and the fighting, and the bloodshed got to his head, and made him kill his own dragons, Timewings, out of cold blood. They had to make a choice, send spare warriors to lock him away, or let him keep killing dragons. So, they locked him away, causing them to lose the war. In his cell, Shirden made alliances with many dragons, and made a machine that could suck the time powers out of every dragon in the world, causing him to be the only one to have the essence of the elders.” 

“But, with his limited resources, he couldn’t finish the machine,” Mr. Time interrupted. “And I found the blueprints for the time machine, so I can build it. I don’t want the dark forces to infect anybody.” 

“So, you are going to infect yourself with these ‘dark forces’ you care so much about,” Ed’an remarked. His father opened his mouth to yell at Ed’an, then thought better of it.

“We have the ability to control it, but if the dragons of Crizam find a way to discover the essence of the elders and use it, it could infect their minds and make them do horrible things,” Mr. Time explained, completely back to himself now.

“Wait, aren’t Timewings the only ones who have the essence of the elders?” Ed’an asked, recalling the story.

“All of the dragons of Crizam have the essence of the elders-well, except the Hivewings. They were not here before. But only Timewings have the ability to use it,” Mrs. Time said.

“So you want to take from them what makes us connect with the elders, what makes us all whole?!” Ed’an turned to his father.

Mr. Time started to get angry at Ed’an again, and growled, “I know what is best for Crizam.”

Ed’an backed up, bumping the wall next to his mother. He sat down, curling his tail around him, his face in bewilderment. Something was in his fathers eyes. Something evil. His father tensed, and looked at Mrs. Time, who was flattened against the freezing stone. But no rock was nearly as cold as Mr. Time’s eyes. He took a step forward,  and lunged, grabbing Ed’an’s mother by the forearm, ran through the hallway, through the main cave, and flew out of the entrance. He swooped up, in the direction of the mainland, with Ed’an’s mother captive, shapes blurred by the rain and blackness of the sky. Despite her pleading cries, Mr. Time never gave a glance backwards.

“MOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Ed’an screamed, rushing to the cave entrance that his father (Or not his father, Ed’an had no idea) had just rushed out of. He shot out of the cave like a giant spear, pumping his wings as fast and hard as he possibly could, faster and harder than ever before, and into the raging, hateful tempest. Even though he tried his very best, the storm out paced his stamina. Not getting far, and having to return to the cave, wet, tired, and in disbelief. Ed’an sat down heavily, his head hung low, looking into the hard rain, wishing his wings were strong enough to carry him to his mother. He thought hard. He wondered why his father did that, Why his father acted so differently in the moment. Ed’an stood up, his wings sore from the battering wind. He had the very small beginning of an idea.

“I’m coming, mom. And for you too, dad.”

“I’m coming.”