After Feng got back to the inn after the fight with Beatrice and Cherry, he had a moment to relax. “Ah.. I wonder what Loo is doing… things have been so crazy, and I know for a while River and Avari said the magic cave interfered with the messages, I haven’t had a chance to ask.”
“Loo, it’s me, Feng! Sorry it’s been a while, things have been really crazy!”
Loo tentatively responded, “Hi… Feng….I am kind-of upset at the moment. There are some nasty matters at hand. I was asked to leave the Dragon’s Challenge…. my calling was revoked.”
“Huh?” Feng was taken aback, hesitating for a second. “Why would they do that? Especially after our calling together… you were faster that Sue!”
Loo’s tone was nervous, “The dragons are talking war….. we have to take sides. I was told to leave the good dragons. You know me… I have dual dragon blood… both good and evil. Yet, I am being forced to choose. Sue told Chatter to call a Dragon’s war counsel!”
Feng paused for a second, listening and thinking about the situation. “What does your heart say most importantly, right now? I know you and I differ and certain subjects because of your lawfulness and my chaotic nature… but… I just wanna know that first.”
Loo continued, “That is why I am upset. Being blue, I am lawful evil….. but being gray … I am neutral evil. Evil is such a relative word. Doesn’t it depend on what side of the sword you are standing to determine if something is evil?”
“I look blue, and the other blues are expecting me to ‘fall in line” and go with them.”
“Most don’t know that I actually identify more with the gray… but there are no grays here, so I am alone and once again the outcast.”
Feng took a breath.”You’re right. You know from my adopted family too… this doesn’t help as far as the other dragons, however – you’re never an outcast if you have me… we’re the both worlds boy. Additionally… I know that Dragons look to their heritage a lot, and they are prideful as they should be, but… this is an instance where the total chaotic part of me says, forget about colors. You are Loo. You are strong, you are fast, and we never lose. Even if this doesn’t help with the pressure from the blue dragons and figuring out what to do, you are in charge of your destiny. Not the chromatic dragons, and not the metallic. I’ll make sure to tell Avari about talks of a war council so he can talk to Chatter…” Feng paused for a moment before asking “Why are they talking about a war? And…. why would they be picking sides like this?”
There is a long pause before Loo continued, “We dragons live complex lives… always worried that the neighboring town puts up a bounty attracting adventurers to drive us from our caves or take our eggs, or worse just kill us.”
“We can defend ourselves, but….”
“Well, it is complicated. We can’t proactively do anything to stop it. We are bound. We are bound… we have given so much for the protection of Vala and yet we are not given our proper respect. Sue tells us to be patient — to wait for the prophecy to be fulfilled…. but the Chromatic Dragons are tired of waiting! They want to take matters into their own hands. Blues are Chromatic.”
“The Metallic dragons, led by Sue, and now Chatter, I guess, are of good alignments and they are sworn to an oath. They wait for the prophecy… I don’t know what to do. The Chromatic dragons will not wait forever and Sue is saying that if we break from the oath, we will all die.”
“Esmeralda, Blaze, Ryan and myself were the Chromatic representatives at the Dragon Challenge….. but with Esmeralda going nuts and trying to kill Argone, it caused quite an uproar. The fact that Sue let Avari take Esmeralda is what this is about – we let a lesser creature take one of our own! Yes, what she has doing with Rexx was wrong, but under dragon law, she would have been dwelt with by the Dragon Council. But Sue abandoned dragon law when he let your friend take Esmeralda. This is so serious…. it is an affront to who we are as dragons. It reeks of the arrogance of humans across the ages… taking our eggs and forcing us to be used as mounts. Some dragons are about to break the oath over this!”
Loo was clearly getting mad….
“And do you know why the Chromatic dragons participate in the Dragon’s Challenge with the Metallic? Because we are helping them find the one foretold in prophecy. One who will complete the task! But Sue allowing a dragon to be captured like a pet is the last straw. The Metallic dragons are on a fool’s errand and have fallen for Orden’s use of the Wizard’s first rule!” Feng listened to this all, pausing to try and understand all of what was going on. Though he was about to make a comment on Avari being called a lesser creature when obviously his teacher was also a gold dragon on account of his scales and his magic in Feng’s eyes , his selective hearing still picked out a few words from Loo’s long speech, causing him to blink. “Oh that’s weird! This one see-er man stopped me today and talked about me being the one who could handle these Orden Box thingies? Is that related or is Orden just a common name around these parts???”
Loo says, “I am still under an oath, as least for now. I am not supposed to talk about the Boxes of Orden… how do you know of them?”
Feng responds, “A see-er read my fortune and mentioned that I would be the one who could handle those boxes. I’m still not sure what they are though?”
Loo was flabbergasted, “What!? No… it can’t be, I did not sense it when you rode me…..”
Feng was taken aback as Loo continued. “Why? How could you do that? I thought you cared for the dragons… I thought you were different from the other lesser creatures!” There was deep pain and anger in his voice.
“How could I what? Loo, I can’t confirm or deny anything unless I know what you’re talking about! Ultimately, again I don’t even know what my fortune means. I just know that you’re my friend, and I’d want to help you.”
There is a long pause before Loo speaks, “Do you care at all for dragons and our lives? Even those of us that are evil?”
“Loo… of course I do.” Feng paused, almost baffled. “Loo… you said it earlier that evil depends on the sword. My entire family is considered evil, but they are the best people I’ve ever met. Even if you are evil, you are my friend, and I care about your life greatly. You can be evil, but you are a good friend, who cared enough to listen to me and let me share my past with you, and you shared your own past. As a druid, I care about all life. Everything has a purpose.” For a brief moment, Feng sounded firm, strong, and slightly more grown than his usual carefree attitude. Again, a long pause from Loo, “Well, you must promise me that you will NOT open the Boxes of Orden. If you do, you will kill me – and all dragons, too!”
“Those boxes are dragon killers!?!?!?! That’s terrible!” immediately Feng went back to his normal self, that being genuinely shocked, slightly teary, sad, and scared at the very thought of any dragon dying by his hand, just like the Feng we know and love.
Loo’s voice changed, and was sadder. “Because of what Avari did, the Truce is broken. The dragons are likely to die soon – long before you probably even find the boxes, assuming that you are looking. Because of Orden’s magic, we are about to die ….”
Feng responded, ”I understand your side, but Avari isn’t some lesser creature. He has gold ancestry, and Sue is the one who changed her. She flew down right in the middle of the ceremony with that Rex and tried to kill us! Besides, Avari got a prophecy too, I was there when I heard it. The see-er person said that Avari could be the one to fix something critical to life regarding that purge thing.” Feng’s voice was firm again. “I can tell that we’ll probably be going in circles if we continue… and I doubt you’ll take my advice, especially since you’ve said before you think it’s silly I believe in something like fate… but everything in life has a purpose, and as long as I’m alive, I will do my best to make things right. I’d appreciate if you had faith in me, whatever my role in making life better for you and all dragons may be, but if I can’t have it now my friend, I hope to see you after… maybe over a cup of tea.”
This time Loo was quick with a response, “The Purge… yes, the Purge! Vile mages thought they could become gods! Their foolishness is why all dragons have been deprived of our true nature and our true status as the original rulers of Vala. I must go … I have much thinking to do regarding where I cast my lot, which side I will choose –I do not make rash decisions. But I implore you – do not open the Boxes of Orden unless you have the Book of Counted Shadows and have read it.”