The night passed in a blur.

The moon had already risen by the time they left the Great Roost, casting a sickly pall over a night colder than any Valen could remember. The slightest noise startled him, eyes darting around wildly as though a dragon might materialize out of thin air and attack him.

He knew that he was being foolish, but he couldn’t help it. Fear was a vicious thing, and it had Valen in its clutches. The only comfort that night came from Raenelir who, despite the direction of all – even the Matriarch herself – refused to stray far from him. Though the immediate danger had passed, something about the wyvern’s naming and the events that led to it seemed to have bonded the two in a way Valen did not have the time to even contemplate right now.

It was at once exciting and yet strange, another unknown in a day full of them.

By the time the sun was rising again, however, Valen was simply happy to have a constant companion in a time of uncertainty. His father and brother worked all night with Valen at their side, though he had to pause frequently to keep Raenelir from nipping or harassing any of the other wyverns from the flight since he had not yet been brought fully under the sway of Maelienas.

That meant that they, at least, could throw themselves into their work to keep their mind off of what was coming. His mother and Hera were busy with... honestly, Valen didn't know what, only that they were in and out of the various buildings all over the Hatchery all through the night and early morning, Hera hot on their mother's heels at all times.

Valen supposed that the most curious thing to happen regarding his mother and sister was that the little orphaned wyvern whelp Aevra would no longer leave Hera’s side.

If he could compare it to anything, he would have compared it to the bond between himself and the wyvern Highborn, though in this case it was more like, with no one else to attach itself to for protection, the wyvern hatchling had simply bonded with another out of an innate survival instinct. Regardless, no one had any time to deal with re-nesting the little wyvern, and that meant things would simply have to stay as they were until the immediate danger had passed.

By early afternoon the next day, the Great Roost had been almost completely emptied out. Only the wyverns that had recently given birth and whose hatchlings could not yet fly on their own remained in the building. Maelienas kept an eye out from above. She had taken to the sky and landed higher up on the mountain, high enough that she could see everything happening below while still remaining close enough that she could leap in to protect the Hatchery if the riders returned earlier than had been promised.

While he, his father and Aiden had erected some basic defenses, there wasn’t much they could do to protect themselves from the aerial assault of the dragons beyond simply relying on the Matriarch and the most powerful members of her flight, who had stayed behind to defend Maelienas even when many of the others had been released to flee.

Of course, releasing so many of the beautiful creatures had not been easy. Never before had Valen seen his father so distraught and torn by his own actions. Yet, to simply force the wyverns to stay when one of the Draconic Orders were about to descend to slaughter them in their nests would have been far worse than letting them go, and so while he sent them off reluctantly, he did send them off, with the Matriarch’s assistance on occasion when one refused to go.

Soon enough the Galar Hatchery was emptier than Valen had ever seen it, with only those few hunters still flying by overhead, there to defend what few wyverns and their hatchlings remained. To see it so abandoned, its structures stark against the stone of the mountains upon which it was built, sent chills down Valen’s spine.

“Valen,” his mother said, her soft but reluctant voice cutting through his reverie and pulling his attention away from the bone-white mountains of the Divide. Raenelir, lying on the ground next to him, let out a low rumble that seemed more curious greeting than protective warning as Vela approached them, which Valen was grateful for.

At least the Highborn was getting used to the other humans. It made life much easier.

“Hello, Ma,” he replied, his voice much hoarser than he’d been expecting. How long had he been sitting here, at the edge of the Roost House, mind floating up with the dark clouds overhead?

“It’s… it’s getting later. Your Da and I think… you, Aiden and Hera need to get to safety. Up to the caves where you found –“

“You want us to run?!” Valen suddenly interrupted, up on his feet in an instant. Raenelir’s lips peeled back, the alarm of his flightbrother turning its curiosity to anger. His mother’s hands were already up as though she had been ready for his response and knew she would have to placate him.

“If not for your sake, Valen, then for your sister. And certainly not far. If…” she began, before pausing as though she wasn’t sure how she wanted to phrase what came next. Valen didn't know if what she did end up saying was what she had originally intended to. “When this is over, we want you to be close, so that you can make it back quickly. Your father can’t leave the wyverns here to face the danger alone. He… his duty is to the wyverns first, always. Aiden wanted to stay as well, but after a long conversation we convinced him that while he has his duties here, he also has duties to his family. That includes you and your sister. And I… I will not leave your father here alone,” Vela explained.

Her words made sense, yet Valen could not accept that he simply had to pack up and go hide in the mountains while his parents faced all the danger by themselves.

“Ma, I get all of that, and I know that should be enough for me, but…” here he trailed off. He didn't know why he felt such a surge of reckless courage. Gritting his teeth in frustration, he stuck his chest out and stood to his full height, fueled by a combination of that courage and adrenaline from the past day’s events and the threat approaching their home even now.

Then Raenelir was on his feet, head falling level with Valen’s, eyes locking first with Vela and then turning his head so he could look his flightbrother in the eyes as well. There was a flash of… something… in the Highborn’s eyes, and then the wyvern nudged him, gently but still with enough force to push him a step back.

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Light though the push might have been, it still knocked the recklessness right out of him, bringing him back to reality. And the reality was that, not only did he have a little sister to look out for, he also had Raenelir now. While his father and brother had been working with the flight for much longer than him, and had bonded as flightbrothers with many of the wyverns they had cared for over the years, Valen’s only flightbond was with the Highborn that had refused to leave his side since facing off with the dragon riders the night before.

Raenelir’s safety was his responsibility.

The other wyverns might have been his father’s and Aiden’s, but Raenelir alone was his flightbrother. That meant something. So, as the last bit of resistance left him, Valen’s shoulders slumped and he took a deep breath before he said anything more.

“I’ll go with Aiden and Hera, Ma, but… you have to promise me that you’ll do whatever you can to make it out of here safely. I know the Hatchery means everything to you and Da, and the lives of the wyverns mean even more. Still, I don’t… I don’t know what I would do without you.” Here, finally, his voice broke, and though he didn’t cry that was enough. Vela stepped closer and wrapped her son in a hug, tight enough to be uncomfortable, but he didn’t care. And though they stood there for several long moments, it was still too soon when his mother broke the hug off and stepped back.

Raenelir let out another rumble, nudging Valen again, this time in the back as if to say, 'alright, let’s get a move on.”

Vela smiled at that, apparently picking up on the strange communication going on between the Highborn and her son. She wiped away a single tear that had begun to fall down her cheek and then turned, waving for Valen to follow her.

“Come along, then. Your siblings are already waiting for you,” she said. Sighing, Valen stepped away from the edge of the Great Roost's large wyvern entrance and followed his mother back through the building to the main courtyard. The smaller wyvern entrance on this side, just large enough for a single wyvern mother to pass through at a time, had been left open since the night before, so it was easy for Raenelir to follow right along beside him.

It was just as his mother had said. Aiden stood with a large pack thrown over his shoulders, bouncing from one foot to the other with a look on his face that seemed to fall somewhere between angry and sick. Hera stood beside him, her attention focused on something in her arms that Valen realized as he grew closer was Aevra. She had a pack over her shoulders as well, smaller than Aiden’s but nonetheless likely filled with whatever essentials they might need to stay the night up in the caves.

“We’re bringing Aevra with us then, eh?” he chuckled as he approached, deciding that the best way to get over his fear of what might happen here in the Hatchery while they were gone was to act as though nothing was wrong at all. He didn’t really know if that was right or not, but it was all he could think of in the moment.

Luckily, that seemed to be the right tact to take with Hera, because when she looked up at him she was smiling.

“She won’t leave me alone, and Da said it’s better to bring her with us since she’s afraid and all, and she might get into trouble without her mama to keep an eye on her and he and Ma busy with… everything else,” she replied, though her words grew slower and less sure as she continued speaking. Shoving his own fears down as far into the back of his mind as he could, Valen just smiled at her.

“Well, I reckon Da knows what he’s talking about then, right? You might think you were her mama with the way she’s been sticking to your side all day long, after all!” he told her. This earned him a chuckle from Hera, a grateful smile from his mother, and an exasperated groan from Aiden, who very much looked as though he wished he could be doing anything else at all besides leaving. When he spoke up, Valen almost flinched at the anger in his voice.

“Stop with the fake positivity, Valen. You know just as well as I do that-“

“That is enough, Aiden. We’ve been over this already. The best thing you can do for us right now is to make sure your siblings are safe. That takes priority over how you might feel on the matter,” a voice cracked, cutting off whatever else Aiden might have said. All heads turned to see Aliden approaching, the patriarch of the Galar family looking shockingly intimidating, decked out as he was in full leather armor with a longsword sheathed across his back.

The only one of them who seemed unsurprised by their father’s appearance was Vela, who seemed more sad than anything else. An insignia of some kind was emblazoned on Aliden’s chest piece, though it had faded along with the aged leather. Valen could make out the vague shape of what looked to be a drake curling in on itself, wings outstretched, but no details were visible beyond that.

“Da… ?” Aiden wondered aloud, eyes wide in shock. Even Hera, so preoccupied by Aevra, couldn’t help the squeal of surprise that slipped out of her. Valen’s mouth hung agape as he took in his father’s battle-ready form. This was a side of the man that he had never seen. He found himself looking between Aliden and Vela in equal turns, the first because of his surprise appearance and the second because of her lack of shock as she took it in.

“I had hoped you’d never wear that again,” their mother said, her eyes clouded with distant memories. Aliden gave her a grim smile and a nod.

“I had hoped the same,” he replied, before turning his attention back to his children.

Several long moments of silence passed then, the weight of too many words than could possibly be spoken building yet refusing to break through. Then their father smiled again, this one real, and warm, all hints of regretful duty or sadness gone.

“We love each of you. You know that. I know that. Now get on out of here, and protect each other, you hear me?” was all that he said. Then he turned and was gone, racing over to where one of the wyvern hunters that had been patrolling the skies overhead now sat waiting halfway across the courtyard. As his father reached the wyvern, Valen realized with a start that a saddle had been placed over the drake’s back, and he watched in amazement as Aliden pulled himself up into it with the ease that could only come with years of experience.

“Who… who is Da, really?” Valen found himself asking, before either his brother or sister could manage it for themselves.

“That, I’m afraid, is a story for another time. For now, though, you have somewhere to be. Get moving. I want you safe and hidden before the sun is finished setting, you understand me?” their mother replied. Though she spoke with love, there was no mistaking that her words were a command and not a request.

So, with no other choice, the siblings turned and left through the Hatchery’s main gate, Aevra now following along, close by Hera’s feet, with Raenelir taking up a protective position at their rear. The Highborn’s natural instincts for fighting became more and more apparent the more time that Valen spent with him.

While before he’d thought that a bad thing, now he couldn’t have been more thankful for the wyvern’s combative inclinations. It could very well save their lives again before the night was over, just as it had saved his life just last night.

As they continued along the path that led from the Hatchery down towards the town of Wyrha far below, Valen couldn’t help but look back as often as he could, watching as the home he had known his entire life receded behind them.

It had long faded from sight as they took the winding road that led down along the Divide when they finally veered off of the path and up towards another cave entrance that his family had discovered long ago, one of many such small entrances into the mountainside, this one the perfect size for their group to hide out in.

Yet still Valen found himself looking back in the direction from which they had come, hoping against all odds that when the sun rose tomorrow morning, their home would still be there, waiting for them.

That it wouldn’t be the burnt out husk the dragon riders intended it to be.