Felix made his slow way through the clearing, stopping only to pick up debris. The sun had set, yet the last tendrils of orange and red light were enough for now. The Sages assisted as well, doing the bulk of the work with their magics. Everyone else scrambled, trying to get the majority of work done tonight for tomorrow was already going to be a busy day…

Don't you think she was acting strange? he asked Zira as he came to a stop. He bent down and picked up a hammer, tossing it onto a makeshift sled. His partner was dragging it with it attached to her harness.

She turned her head and gave him a pointed look. Today hasn't exactly been normal.

He grimaced and looked away. I…know. Believe me. If there is anyone who knows it's me. But Eri seemed anxious about something. And the way she interrupted Zeph…

Zira let out a snort. I don't like her.

You don't like any dragon that gets near me, he countered, rolling his eyes.

That may be, but she's too…nice.

Too nice? Really?

Yes. And she has that weird fascination she talked about– Don't forget how she was so easily able to read you. I don't trust her. She let out another snort before continuing their slow march.

Felix didn't feel the same. It was true how easy it was for Zeph to read him like a book, but he didn't see any animosity or deception in her eyes. To him, she felt honest. And, perhaps more importantly, Kyrith seemed to like her…

He peered up to the night sky, the last bit of light quickly fading. Watcher's last breath played in his mind. It's hard to believe he's gone… It doesn't feel real– Like, all I have to do is pop into the Hatchery and call his name. He'll poke his head out from one of the dens and say, 'What Master need?' or something.

Zira nudged his mind reassuringly. He might not be truly gone. His spirit may still linger.

Maybe… Felix gave a weak smile and let out a sigh. It's getting too dark. We should–

"Felix!"

The sound of his name caused him to turn around. Approaching him was Yedril. He gave the young elf a wave.

Yedril came to a stop before him, holding one of his arms awkwardly. "Sorry to bother you," he said. "I know it's getting late but I was hoping to catch you when you weren't busy."

"Oh? What for?"

"Well, it's for two reasons." The elf went to rub the back of his neck but suddenly hissed as he lifted his arm.

"Are you alright?" Felix asked, giving him a concerned look.

"You mean my arm?" He lowered the limb in question. "Yeah, I broke it earlier. But I had a healer look at it. They healed the bone but couldn't spare the mana on anything else. There were others a lot worse off than me…"

"Yeah, I bet," Felix responded drearily before something important dawned on him. "How's Zarrina? Is she okay?"

Yedril suddenly looked guilty. "That's…actually one of the reasons I wanted to find you. She burned a lot of mana on me and I'm worried what that will do to her. The healers tried to help her, but they didn't know enough about dragons…"

Felix's concern deepened. Damn it… And here I was hopeful that nothing too serious would come from Zarrina helping him with his illness. "That, unfortunately, doesn't surprise me about the healers. I'm not sure if there is anything anyone can do for her but If you want, I could try and take a look."

The young elf shuffled uncomfortably. "I'm aware… But… Could you?"

Felix gave him a pat on his good shoulder. "Where is she at? In the hatchery?"

"She is– Along with my sister and…" He smacked his head with his good arm. "I almost forgot the second reason!!"

Felix raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

The elf took a breath. "It's my parents. They came along with the new arrivals and they want to meet you."

"Ah."

"I told them you would probably be busy and I'm worried about Zarrina… But they really want to meet you."

Great, more hero worship. He suspected they wanted to meet him because he was responsible for finding a way to treat Yedril's disease. Better get this done and over with now and not put it off… "I see. And where are they at?" he asked, folding his arms.

"The Hatchery as well. I allowed them in. I hope that was okay… Solanna is there and so is Lorem and Noria."

Felix held back a frown. He didn't like the idea of bringing in just anyone into the Hatchery, not without him being there. But Yedril and the others have been responsible so far…

"Yeah, it's fine for tonight. But only for tonight," he answered. "I know they are your parents but we can't have everyone strolling in and out so freely. Not anymore."

Yedril bowed. "I'll make sure they know. And, thank you."

"You're welcome. Anyway, let me go dump this debris and then I'll head there." he gestured to the makeshift sled.

"Thank you!" The young elf stood straight before taking off back toward the Hatchery, holding his arm all the while…

Well, are you ready? He asked Zira, shaking his head. I don't care much for the praise but I'm concerned for Zarrina.

Same for me, let us go see how she is.

Felix reached up and patted her side. I fear we can only hope and pray…

***

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"Where is she?" Felix asked as he and Zira entered the Hatchery. Standing before them was Yedril and Solanna, along with two unfamiliar elves.

That must be their parents, he thought.

Further behind the siblings, were the sleeping jewels. Lorem and Noria sat with the dragons, keeping an eye on them…

Before he could make his way over to them, however, the two unknown elves appeared before him.

"You must be the Champion!" One said, presumably Yedril's father.

The poor young elf gave him an apologetic look before he began speaking. "Mom, Dad, this is Felix. He is the one who helped me and allowed us to hatch our partners."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Felix said, doing his best to smile. He really wanted to go check on Zarrina first…

The parents gave a deep bow. "It is an honor to meet the Champion and to give our thanks for saving our son," the father said. Straightening themselves, he continued, "My name is Lannon, and this is my wife, Terinia."

The mother spoke next, practically beaming. "Thank you so much. Without your generosity, I don't believe we would have had the opportunity to see our son."

Felix bit back a sigh. "Yedril is a good man. He's a lot stronger than I think most people give him credit for. All I did was help him– Gave him a bit of mana when it was needed. The real heroes are him and his partner."

Lannon nodded in agreement, yet there was a hint of guilt in his eyes. "Indeed, I only wish I realized that sooner…"

His wife took his hand and squeezed it, even as she addressed Felix. "We were too protective. All his life he's suffered and we were terrified of him leaving our sight. It nearly cost us both of our children."

A second passed as she seemingly drifted off into another world. "Yedril always believed he would die young. But instead of wallowing in his own misery, he tried hard to make something of his short time. He always talked about wanting to see the world, about exploring… Even if it killed him.

"But, because of you and his…uh, partner, he has his whole life ahead of him. He can do that. He can explore the world and leave his mark upon it. For that, we are truly grateful. We have nothing more to offer outside of that gratitude."

They gave one more bow, leaving both Felix and their son to stand awkwardly. Thankfully Solanna decided to intervene.

"Mother, Father, while I'm sure Felix would love to chat with you, there is something…more important that he is here for."

He quickly offered a bow of his own. "I apologize but Solanna is right. I need to check on Zarrina– Yedril's partner."

"Oh! Then we shall step aside… But is everything alright?" Terinia asked, looking between her son and Felix.

"Hopefully," he said, beating Yedril. "But after the day we've had, I just want to make sure…" He gave them a reassuring smile before slipping away. Yedril followed and Solanna picked up the conversation, distracting their parents.

"So tell me, what exactly happened?" Felix asked, as he came to a stop before the sleeping dragon.

The elf grimaced. "I…got a bit carried away. When the fighting started, I wanted to rescue as many people as I could."

Felix was midway to kneeling when he froze at that. Oh Gods, please don't tell me… "Let me guess, Zarrina burned her mana on you while you went and helped everyone?"

"Y-yeah," Yedril muttered, suddenly sounding quite terrified. "I-I wasn't thinking straight… And… I… I just wanted to help– She wanted to help… We wanted to help…"

It took all of Felix's willpower to not bury his head into his hands. Okay, let's stop and save that for another time. Frankly, I shouldn't say much myself. Zira and Kyrith both used their mana…

He shook his head and finished kneeling. I need to think about what we can do for Zarrina. He closed his eyes and put a hand upon the quartz-colored dragon. With a piercing headache, he called forth just a sliver of his mana…

Diving deep into Zarrina's core, Felix followed the trail that his mana left him as he searched for any signs of damage. At first he found nothing and began to relax, but something immediately caught his eye as he entered where her soul laid.

A fracture. Tiny, almost invisible. Yet, it stood out in the crystal-like soul before him. That, too, was fascinating but he was running out of time. His body was screaming at him to stop, begging him to rest.

Quickly, he moved closer and inspected the crack. His mana thinned and tapered to a fine point before diving in.

Strange, he thought, intercepting her subconscious thoughts. They felt a lot like Zira's and Kyrith's, but different. Unique. Of course they would be. Zira and Kyrith both feel unique as well… I'm just used to them.

He had to focus and soon pushed both his and her thoughts away…

The damage to her soul felt negligible to him. However, that didn't necessarily mean much. He only had his own soul and that of Hanzel's and Torm's to compare to. And those two weren't exactly in good condition either…

Still, that gave him hope. The crack was superficial and with a small trickle of his life force, Felix believed he could heal it.

And that's what he did…

***

Felix slumped to the floor, covered in sweat. He did his best to avoid landing upon any of the dragons but his body was on fire and in agony. He still held on.

Felix!

"Felix!"

The two voices shouted at the same time, confusing him as he tried to think straight. "Y-yeah?"

Zira was standing over him in a heartbeat, a frantic look in her eyes. Gods! Felix! Are you okay?!

He shook his head and blinked. I'm…mostly fine, he answered after several moments. The pain was already beginning to recede and his mind began to clear. That's…different.

What's different? Felix–

He stood up and inspected his hand, expecting it to quiver. It didn't. Oddly enough, though, the air did start to feel cold… Hmm, I wonder–

Felix shoved the thought aside and gave Zira a comfort pat on her chest. "I'm okay. My mana is completely drained, but I'm okay."

She poked into his mind, searching for any deceit. He let her and waited until she was satisfied.

"See? Exhausted and drained of mana, but otherwise fine."

"Okay," she responded, relenting her search and slowly calming down. She still stayed close and continued to watch him.

He gave her a smile before addressing Yedril. "So, I've got good news," he started with as the shocked elf started. "I found a small crack in Zarrina's soul and–"

"WHAT?!" The young elf looked on the verge of a panic attack and Felix quickly elaborated.

"I mended it! It's healed… It was just a hairline fracture. It would've healed on its own," he lied. He had no way of knowing if it would heal by itself. But it's better that I don't tell him that…

"She should be fine now, just needs a bit of rest… I'd suggest taking her to the Sanctuary and let her sleep there. The denser mana will help."

Yedril stared down at his partner with an almost despondent look. "Okay."

Felix felt guilt build up inside him. In many ways, I am the one at fault for all this. I am responsible for them… I should have said something, should have stopped them… He took a deep breath. "I will find a way to prevent this from happening again."

The elf gave him a surprised look. "W-what?"

"You all are my responsibility–"

"No! This is my fault! I did this… I…" Tears began to stream down Yedril's face.

He put a gentle hand upon the elf's shoulder. "And I am the one responsible for making sure you understand. I failed and we got lucky. I know that and I'm not going to let this opportunity go to waste. I will find a way so that we never have to worry about any young dragon using their mana."

"H-how?"

Felix looked up to the false sky of the Hatchery as he pondered that question. How? How can it be done? His eyes widened as he remembered two very important things– Well, one important thing and one important person…

He cracked a smile. "I might have an idea."

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