Tal stared down at the table, at the map placed upon it. On it, their plans were drawn. Yet, no one seemed pleased with their orders. The tension was high and many looked to him to ask the most obvious question…

"Any questions?" the Admiral asked, slowly scanning his men before settling on Tal.

There was silence as Tal bit his lip. Even if he could ask the question, he wouldn't. Everything, every moment of his life, was coming to a head. He would have his revenge.

However, not every officer agreed. Not every sailor wanted this. Doubt had taken hold, especially after running into the kraken. Doubt was even evident upon the Admiral.

But we must…

The questioning eyes fell away, he wasn't going to be the one.

"Then–"

"Sir! What about…" One of the junior officers blurted out before all attention fell upon him. The air was filled with trepidation. He shouldn't be the one.

"Go on, get your question out." Antony motioned for him to continue. Yet, everyone gave the junior officer a pleading look, silently begging him not to.

Emboldened by the Admiral, he ignored the looks. "Why must we fight? Surely, we can reach an accommodation? These elves… They might be able to help us!" He turned towards Tal. "Maybe the Champion can remove the–"

"Stop."

The single word was cold and heavy. The rest of the officers looked away, knowing their junior had already sealed his fate.

"We cannot–"

Tal interjected, his anger and rage flaring. "There will be no surrender," he hissed.

"But–"

The junior officer was cut off as he went on, ice in his tone. "We were given a mission. Already those more foolish than you, have died trying to delay this."

Several of the older officers winced while the Admiral merely took a deep breath. Antony gazed upon the outspoken man.

"Despite morale, none of the sailors would entertain such an idea. Nor would our compliment of marines. And our Champion… Tal is more than enough to win this."

Hearing his name, Tal balled his fists until they were white.

"With that out of the way, any serious questions?"

No one spoke a word.

"Then with that, you're dismissed."

A few moments later, the officers filed out. Tal followed shortly after, giving the Admiral one final glance. Antony was shaking his head.

As they stepped onto the deck, the ship's crew was busy adjusting the rigging. A sudden gust of wind caught the sails, causing them to go taught.

Snap!

A thick, heavy rope broke free.

One moment, the junior officer was standing there, waiting to climb down into the row boat below. In the next moment, he was cut in two.

It happened right in front of Tal, blood splattering across him and the deck.

"The…Sanctuary?"

Felix wasn't sure who asked the question but he gave a definitive nod. "I can show you after this meeting, but it is something the Dragon Queen worked on before–" He stopped himself. "It is unfinished."

"And you wish for us to finish it?" This time he was sure it was one of the dwarves, but who they were still remained a mystery.

He shook his head, no. "The Sanctuary itself is a massive cavern. What I'm thinking is to build above it. It's heavily forested. However, I think that might help us in the long run. I doubt anyone but Eri, Kyrith, Zira, and I know its exact location."

Several people were clearly considering his suggestion, including Gillador. The elf suddenly spoke up.

"A hidden town… Not a bad idea."

"And one that has a place to run to," Felix added.

"But how far away is this Sanctuary? It sounds fairly close if you are suggesting showing us. However…" It was that same dwarven voice and he sounded unconvinced.

"It's far enough. But! We have a portal. We can take it to get there instantly."

Murmurs followed and Felix looked to Oralyn. She immediately cleared her throat and the crowd began to settle down. "So, Felix has offered a counter proposal, one that will warrant further investigation. I offer we leave the matter unresolved until we have seen this…Sanctuary."

She paused and brought her attention to Aluin. "Do you have any objections to that?"

"No. Quite the opposite, actually. I look forward to seeing the Sanctuary myself." The Sage finished and gave a bow before making his way back to the other Sages.

"We shall move on then… And we have two final matters to discuss. The first is the news that the dragon, Lorenzen, brought to us yesterday. We have an enemy saboteur on our island, in our home."

Almost everyone's expression turned sour, but none more than Felix. The very thought of someone like that roaming free made his blood boil.

Oralyn continued, "I believe everyone has been made aware of this situation, yes?"

There were nods all around.

"Then I shall keep it short. We know what their target is and Lorenzen has assured us that the dragons can and will handle this situation. One of them is already at the barrier, guarding it from any intruder."

Felix couldn't help but notice that many relaxed at those words. However, it was apparent that perhaps not all the information had been shared. Several, including the Sages, did not look so convinced.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Nor did Zira. Or Eri…

His partner let slip her unease across their bond. He did his best to send a reassuring, mental pat to calm her. Meanwhile, Oralyn spoke once more.

"We have one final topic. And this one might require some care…" She turned to Felix. "Would you like to handle this?"

Still distracted by Zira, it took him a moment to realize what the elven woman was referring to.

Ah… That's right. He took a deep breath and stepped into the center of the ring of people.

"Thank you, Oralyn…" He trailed off and considered his words carefully. A feeling of trepidation rose from his core.

You've got this. Remember, you aren't alone.

Eri's words soothed him, letting him think. "Chief Calsen– Former Chief, Calsen," he corrected, "has committed murder against his own daughter. Not only that, but he is responsible, either directly or indirectly, with twenty-six other deaths.

"This is not up for debate. There is overwhelming evidence, along with the personal accounts of many here… But, what is up for debate, is what do we do with him? I am proposing that we hold a sort of hearing for him. One where his surviving victims may confront him. Then… Then…"

Felix felt his voice hitch but he pushed through, he had to. Thankfully, having his family behind him and supporting him, helped. A lot.

He shook his head. "Then, we publicly execute him."

***

Several gasps sounded out as everyone filed into the center of the massive cavern that made up the Sanctuary. Well, everyone save for Zira and Kyrith. They were too big now to fit through the portal and had to stay behind, much to their disappointment.

However, for Felix, his mind was still contemplating the meeting. It had gone about how he had expected, but his proposal for Calsen still left a sour taste in his mouth. But there is nothing more to say, justice must be served…

The thought faded as he caught Watcher bolting to one of the dens that held dragon eggs. He let out a sigh.

"Leave them be," he said calmly but loud enough for the kobold to hear.

"But–"

"No."

Felix couldn't help but smile in amusement as the dejected grey kobold came to a stop. "Same goes for everyone, do not touch the eggs." He made sure he kept his tone serious and continued to the front of the group.

"Welcome to the Sanctuary. As you can see, it is unfinished." He pointed to the higher levels. "Please stick to the ground floor. I will allow everyone a few minutes to explore but, seriously, do not touch any of the eggs."

With that, the crowd began to disperse. Most stuck close, only breaking into smaller groups. However, Felix observed the Sages and Chiefs congregate towards the closest den. There were eggs inside, but he knew he could trust them to not break his main rule.

He moved on until he caught the amusing sight of the little Jewels as they became almost hyper within the dense mana of the Sanctuary. Their partners doing everything in their power to keep up…

Without warning, he felt someone bump into him. Startled, he found Eri leaning against him.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" she asked in a low voice, wrapping an arm around his.

He nodded, not caring who was watching or listening. "Yeah, no matter how many times I come here, I can't wrap my head around just how big this place is."

"And I have a feeling we'll be coming here more, soon. Everyone is impressed, even Master Aluin."

"Oh– You know, I forgot he didn't know about the Sanctuary."

"No one did," she added. "Well, until you showed me and Kyrith."

"And I would've kept it that way if it weren't for… You know." He couldn't bring himself to finish his sentence, not when it was still a fresh and sore subject for everyone.

"I see it differently."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

He glanced down at her. "Is it because we can make this place a home for everyone?"

Eri shook her head. "That is part of it, but it's more of the grandeur of it all. Just envision it! This place, filled with Dragons, elves, dwarves… And above, it will be a grand city."

For a moment, Felix did exactly that. He let his imagination run wild and envisioned the empty and unfinished Sanctuary as something complete, filled to the brim with people.

It was impressive.

It was grand.

It was…a metropolis.

But then, something she said reminded him of why they were here. He shook the image out of his mind. "It is a beautiful thought… But, I think, it's time we get a move on and make that dream real."

Eri separated from him and he stepped towards where the teleportation enchantment was etched into the floor. "Everyone! Please come and gather close! I will take us topside!"

Slowly, the crowd regathered…

"Will you need any help?" Master Realgar asked, as he came to stand nearby.

"No, the Sanctuary will do the hard work for me." Felix gestured to the floor, already it was glowing faintly with light.

"Impressive…"

"It is," he added in agreement before speaking up once more. "Make sure you are within the outer ring!"

People shuffled closer together, barely giving him any room. Thankfully, he didn't need to physically touch the enchantment to set it off. His mana was already seeping into it, as if it had a mind of its own.

With one final check, he activated it.

The world flashed into his eyes, something that would have disoriented him before. However, now, he was used to it enough that its effects were minimal. All he felt was a slight dizziness that lasted only a few seconds.

As for most, though, they weren't anywhere near as acclimated. A few even had to break free to vomit.

It was a humorous sight, until he spotted the little Jewels writhing in pain. He had forgotten how badly it affected dragons, and this was their first time…

Thankfully, Eri was there in a heartbeat. And, after a tense moment of checking them over, she gave their partners a reassuring smile. "Just sick from the experience, give them some time to rest."

"Thank the gods," Solanna muttered, shaking her head. Noria and Yedril let out a shaky breath, clearly just as worried. In fact, even Lorem looked concerned…

"I'm so sorry," Felix said as he came up to the group, ashamed for not remembering to warn them. "I completely forgot about the effects…"

He trailed off, waiting for someone to yell at him. But nothing came, not even from Solanna. Instead, Noria gave him a wary look as she chose to speak.

"It's okay, we should have known too. This wasn't our first time…"

Solanna nodded, her brows furrowed. "I am more furious at myself, than anything. I knew this would happen," she hissed.

Lorem decided to interject then. "Everyone, relax. We all forgot, and we all share in this screw up. Thankfully, they will be fine."

With his piece said, he lowered himself next to Tzarin and scooped him up into his muscular arms. The ruby dragon whimpered, nuzzling and trying to bury his snout into Lorem's chest.

"Shh, it's alright. Just rest…" The elf trailed off before looking to Felix. "Do you think you can send me down along with them," He nodded to the other Jewels.

"I can, but…"

"But the effects might worsen," Eri finished for him.

"I figured that, but this might be better than waiting for them to get better just to make them sick again."

Aluin approached. "I can help. I've already seen what I needed."

Lorem gave him an appreciative look. "I would like that, I'd hate to have to clean up four sick dragons all by myself!"

"I can go too!" Noria shouted, but he shook his head. "You three should stay and explore. I think between me and a Sage, we can handle this."

"Right then… I can send you back down when you are ready," Felix added after a few moments of awkward silence.

"Go ahead, and have fun! Tell me how it is!"

Felix activated the enchantment and sent them back down. Now that I've proven, once again, that I'm an idiot… He scanned the crowd until he found a certain old, grouchy elf.

Time to see how viable this really is.

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