Everyone turned to where the voice came from. Walking toward the table was a tall, graceful Coastlander with stunning features. She was dressed in a scant, elegant robe the color of a starry night. She walked barefoot, and wore nothing underneath the robe, its extravagant cut exposing the olive skin of her well defined curves. Her toxic-green eyes inspected everyone in a cool, imperious manner. If Airo's blood hadn't vaporized already in his incandescent desire for revenge, he would have been hard-pressed to resist the allure of this exotic stranger.

The Coastlander sauntered over to the command room table, forming the apex of a triangle between her, Airo's group, and Lylana and Glawlrhain. "It is good to see you again, Magus," she said in a tranquil, vaguely sensual tone.

"Mentoria," the old Knight nodded tersely.

"Ferrtau has gone over the brink," she continued, her words emphasized with finality. "Now we all shall suffer for the Lightbringer's hubris. The Cosmos itself will pay the ultimate price."

"Cease your theatrics," Magus said gruffly. "What is really at stake?"

Mentoria scoffed, yet her gaze was cold. "I already told you, my dear. If you wish me to repeat myself in more coarse terms for the sake of the audience, I will say this: if Ferrtau's plan succeeds, his actions will unmake the entire Sector, the galaxy, our own subjective universe, and quite possibly reality itself."

The silence in the command room was absolute.

"How?" Magus asked. He leaned forward, planting his palms on the table. "He cannot do this by himself."

"He did not share the intricate details of his mad visions," Mentoria said. "However, it seems his primary aim is to attain complete control over the Shard. Perhaps he found a way to tap into its power. Perhaps during his exile, he somehow came upon forbidden knowledge even we, dear Magus, for all of our long ages, have never come across before."

"And why has he not succeeded?" Magus asked. He raised an eyebrow. "The Shield?"

"Yes," Mentoria said with distaste. "I managed to activate your contraption barely before utter defeat. Honestly, my dear, I never expected this device to be needed at all."

"The problem is, the Shield didn't work completely," Lylana cut in angrily. She sighed, the gesture seemingly deflating her giant frame. "It interrupted the process the Lightbringer started, but it didn't contain the rift he made in the Shard. Reality in the immediate vicinity collapsed almost completely. It's the reason the entire paraworld became so unstable."

"What followed next?" Magus asked.

"After we activated the Shield, we fought a rear guard action," Glawlrhain explained. The dragon had a haunted expression – something Airo had never seen on any of their kind before. "Ferrtau... soul reaved many of our number. He then raised them back as Revenant. The abominations were invulnerable to anything non-draconic or non-Æther. Their onslaught felled the rest of our ranks. We evacuated whoever we could, and fled."

Magus' voice dropped low. "How many of the Order remain?"

"The fighting continued even in the skies," Lylana said, her voice hollow. "Ten dozen Knights survived. A score of them are dragons. We also saved several eggs from the hatchery."

Magus closed his eyes. The command room remained quiet as a tomb. "Did anyone else from the elder Knights survive?" he murmured at last.

"No, sir. Only a handful of us assisted in the evacuation." Lylana paused, her jaw setting. "Except for me and Glawlrhain, there's nobody else older than half a century remaining."

"A noble sacrifice," Magus whispered. "Of course." He opened his eyes, his resolve somewhat returned. "And then?"

"Mentoria led us here, in one of the field training bases which were abandoned after the Dragon Independence War." Lylana glanced sideways. "She... assisted us in hiding our presence. We believe Ferrtau wasted no time in setting out the Revenant to hunt for us. The fall of the Shard had far-reaching consequences with the Consortium and the Union, of course. As soon as they were hit by the Revenant, they accused each other. We tried to contact them in several near-fatal incidents. They didn't listen. At best each thinks us accomplices to the other regarding a burst of unprovoked hostilities."

Magus frowned at Mentoria. "Why are you here, on Terra Para?" he asked her.

The exotic Coastlander made a relaxed, teasing gesture, casually displaying her robed figure to advantage. "Oh, Magus, you know very well how long we have traveled among the stars. You first decided to settle down, creating this quaint little organization." She smiled down on the gathered Radiant Knights. "I, on the other hand, journeyed for a little while longer. Yet already I too feel tired discovering new horizons in the endless ocean of the Great Cosmos. I need some respite. Thus I sought temporary refuge on this convenient world."

"I had told you to stay away from the Order, Mentoria."

"And if I had done so, none of them would be alive now, and Ferrtau would stand unchallenged in his mad crusade."

"We will discuss this further at a later time," Magus warned. "What does Ferrtau want from you? I have made the Shield impossible to disable."

"There is an artifact that can do so under the right circumstances, my dear," Mentoria said, tossing her dark crimson hair.

"My starblade," Magus said. He frowned. "Ferrtau made his own a century ago. Why does he need a second one?"

Mentoria smiled coldly. "He needs his as a catalyst for the Singularity he threatens all of us with. I cheated him out of his solution, and now the once-hero of the galaxy is on a mad crusade to retrieve the only light that can help him."

"And what are all of you doing about it?"

Everyone stared at Airo. He stared right back at them.

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"Ferrtau is out there, searching for a way to annihilate the entire galaxy, as you said. So what are you doing about it?" he repeated.

"We can't do anything," Lylana snapped. Then, her exasperation vanished as abruptly as it had appeared. "We can't do anything," she said tiredly, her expression defeated. "The Radiant Order is almost wiped out. The Consortium and the Union are unwilling to help. The Lightbringer is too powerful. So our only course of action is to stall."

"Stall? Until Ferrtau wins?" Airo demanded.

"Until he loses," Lylana said, her tone hardening. She met the questioning gazes in the room, and continued, "The Radiant Knights never give up. Never. When we activated the Shield to cut off the Lightbringer from the Shard, it failed to contain the rift he had torn open into reality itself. Now this rift slowly expands across Terra Para, bringing warpstorms and oblivion to the entire paraworld. And sooner or later, the rift will engulf the planet. But it will also destroy the Shard." Lylana narrowed her eyes. "Everyone – including the innocent – will pay the price with their lives, but if that means the Lightbringer will be denied his madness, then we will hold him off long enough for this to happen."

"What if Ferrtau goes to another Shard?" Airo asked.

"The only other known Shard in the galaxy is on Utopia Draconis," Glawlrhain said, clicking his claws on the floor. "Even in his current highly potent state, Ferrtau cannot hope to overcome the thousands of my kind who call that world their home."

"What if he finds a third Shard on an unknown world somewhere?"

Airo's question was met with silence, as the others considered the ramifications of such a scenario.

Finally, Mentoria snorted, "If that was possible, Ferrtau would have left the moment his access to the Shard was cut. He needs to be here, on this particular world, whatever the reason."

"Indeed," Magus mused. He glanced at Veralla. "And we might be able to glean his motives by examining recent events more closely."

"Can you clarify, sir?" Lylana asked. She and Glawlrhain seemed intrigued by the old Knight's words.

"When I felt... the presence, resonating out into the Æther, I followed it across the paraworld to Dragon Retreat," Magus said. "Ferrtau was also there, as I already said. And he seemed very intent on taking away this young fledgling here." He gestured at Veralla.

The other Radiant Knights looked at the dragonet as if they saw her for the first time. Airo couldn't resist glancing too. Comical proportions aside, Veralla's void-black coloration truly was something he'd never seen before, either on a dragon or any other creature.

"She's highly unusual, that is true," Glawlrhain agreed. "Though it still doesn't explain why Ferrtau would go after a single fledgling." The dragon swiveled his head, and asked, "Can you channel the Æther, little one?"

"No, I cannot," Veralla said, wings and tail drooping.

"She can't breathe fire either, or fly, which is very strange," Lung blurted. The crimson dragon stopped herself, embarrassed at her verbal slip.

"It happens sometimes with fledglings," Glawlrhain said, pensive. "Although rarely."

"This does not answer why the Lightbringer sought her out," Mentoria said impatiently. She looked at Magus. "Likely you, my dear, and your protege were both misled by some random cosmological flux."

"No," Magus objected. "Neither I, nor Ferrtau will make such a mistake at this point. I am certain the answer is in Veralla. And I believe I know why Ferrtau wanted her." The old Knight paused, making sure he had everyone's attention. "She may be a Primordial dragon."

There was a collective gasp from the Radiant Knights. "Absolutely non sequitur, my dear," Mentoria said incredulously. "This fledgling cannot even display the rudimentary powers of her kind, yet is capable of being a mythical creature from draconic folklore? Impossible."

"I concur," Lylana said reluctantly. "With all due respect, sir, Primordial dragons are nothing but fantastic tales born in the overbearing minds of dragonkind." She glanced around. "Present company excluded."

Glawlrhain raised a claw. "Let's not flap away all possibilities, especially those which come from the likes of Magus Dei." The small dragon unfurled his wings, thinking. "I too, consider Primordials to be nothing more than an image that the best and brightest among my kind can only aspire to, but never reach.

"However, multiple legends say a Primordial dragon can be conceived only from a union between dragons who represent the purest expression of the beauty and power of the Goddess herself. If we vastly simplify the esoteric theory, being a potential Primordial can be a matter of heritage. Genealogy among my kind is a complex subject; in some cases, a progenitor's powers are often inactive but present in their offspring." Glawlrhain regarded Veralla. "Tell me, little one, who are your parents?"

"And where they are, for that matter," Lylana added.

"Oh." Veralla's eyes became big and round. "I... I do not know. Airo says he knew my mother, but he refuses to speak about her."

Airo again became the center of attention. "What?" he asked sullenly, folding his arms.

"Speak up, that's what," Kiana taunted. "Remember, the world itself hangs in the balance, Commander."

"Fine," Airo snapped. "Veralla's mother is Kalessia."

His words fell like a meteorite in the command room.

"Well, this just keeps getting better," Lylana muttered.

"What happened to the Firstborn? Tell us!" Glawlrhain urged.

"She is dead," Airo said flatly.

Kiana inhaled sharply. "The dragon aboard your starship was the Firstborn?!"

"I realized that later, in Dragon Retreat," Airo said sourly.

He then went on to explain to the Radiant Knights the same story he had told Kiana and Zuckeroff while they held him at gunpoint. Again, he carefully omitted details about his reanimation and true identity, mindful of the fact he knew who were the predecessors of the Radiant Order, and that one of them was in the room. The whole time he spoke, both Magus Dei and Mentoria watched him, the former with a studious expression, and the latter with open curiosity bordering on gleefulness. When Airo finished his incomplete tale, the Radiant Knights became bleak and thoughtful.

"The Lightbringer must've sensed their kinship as soon as he'd seen Veralla," Lylana mused. "Perhaps that's why he wanted to take her – simply out of sentiment."

"It could be so," Glawlrhain agreed. "However, that doesn't explain why Ferrtau left the Shard in the first place."

"He might've gone on the offensive."

"Perhaps," the dragon said. "However, it's unlikely. Ferrtau knows just as well as us the Reality Vortex will consume Terra Para if it's not stopped. I think our guess he's using his powers to contain its spread while the Revenant carry out his war is still true."

"So what are you saying?" Stamat blurted. "That we fought a mere astral projection at Dragon Retreat?"

"Probably," Lylana snorted. "We'll have to review the battlefield data to be sure, but I think it's the obvious explanation. Now," she said, turning, "why do you want to apprehend the Lightbringer, Commander Airo?"

"My motives are my own," he said coldly. "All I request from you is to give me a means of transportation to Kryoon City."

"What for?" the towering Scorchlander Knight scowled.

"It is where Consortium headquarters are," Airo said.

"You are not truly part of the Consortium," Magus Dei cut in suddenly. "You said so yourself. If you wish to accomplish your goal in truth, you should stay here. The Radiant Knights will assist you, and you can help them." The old Knight gave Airo a significant look. Airo answered it with a hateful stare.

"I have no need for your advice, old man," he said. "And I certainly will not cooperate with people who consort with dragons."

"Consort," Magus snorted, mimicking Airo's earlier mockery. "Now that is a droll word."

Airo bared his teeth, but then Veralla piped up. "Oh, let us stay here, please, Airo! I am so happy I saw other dragons! I want to become a Radiant Knight like them! We can both become Radiant Knights!" Her comment drew warm smiles from the others.

"Do as you wish," he said harshly. "I am not staying here."

"Please, let us both stay," she said.

"No," he growled.

Veralla hrrr–ed miserably, head bowed low in defeat. Airo stared hard at the gathered group. "Will you grant me transportation, or am I to be made prisoner again?"

Lylana fixed him with a severe expression. "Glawlrhain, assign lodgings for our guests," she said in a level tone. "Stamat, equip Vorzii with a passenger shuttle, and prepare to escort Commander Airo tomorrow to wherever he wishes."