Nix took a seat on a comfortable couch next to the bookshelf, both Aquarions squeezed in next to him. "Why is Yandro's city the key?"

"The twenty-five cities were built during the thousand-year war. The continent of Everspire is populated with fierce races that are incredibly powerful and nearly immune to all magic. The dragons left the core and immediately were forced to unite and fight against a common foe."

Nix understood the sentiment, it was a common theme throughout history. "The cities were built to escape these foes? What about Yandro?"

"The cities were actually built in a circle, with Yandro being the focal point for their magic. Only his Elynmoor has the ability to bring the cities back together." Halla pulled a scroll from his desk and spread it out on the floor. It depicted 25 cities built in a circle. He pointed to the one labeled Elanmoor.

Nix was beginning to understand the issue. "You were going to raise Elynmoor. That's why the Spectrum was being moved."

Halla nodded. "We were going to use it to join the Sky Kingdom. They use to be connected in a great circle, they slowly drifted apart when Elynmoor began to fail."

/Inferno: Nix: Holy...

/Inferno: Milat: Yandro was weakened by the loss of his marrow. Won't Zylanexor be the same?

/Inferno: Nix: I hope so, or else it's going to be a short fight.

"Inferno will take care of Zylanex, he's a Nether Overlord now. That's a lofty existence, but not so high as a dragon."

Hall frowned at the words. "He won't be in violation of the Dragon Accord if he's become a Nether creature."

Nix continued to study the diagram of the dragon cities. They were the seven cities listed in the book he had read. "What is the Dragon Accord?"

"A sacred and binding vow not to fight in battle. Dragons may be arrogant and difficult to understand, but they are also the rarest of creatures and the world would be worse off if they were gone."

Nix seemed to remember that Yandro definitely fought them, although it was Inferno that instigated it. "How are Yandro and Zylanexor getting around that."

"It's a vow taken on their marrow. If their marrow is depleted or mostly gone, they would no longer be concerned about the consequences."

Mina had been listening quietly the entire time, raising forgotten cities seemed to be a worthwhile cause, but was that really at the heart of it? "Spectrum can power all the cities? They could be relinked and the marrow siphoning would stop? I think something is missing."

Halla nodded. "That was our plan. We would use that as leverage to take our place in the Sky Kingdom as equals."

"Shit..." Nix glanced at Mina, he understood what she was getting at. "If Spectrum can bring back the cities that have fallen What can it do to a dragon that has had its marrow drained?"

Halla stared at him, his nose working furiously. "A Dragon God... or something close to it."

/Inferno: Milat: We're going to have to bring in some heavy hitters for this Nix.

/Inferno: Nix: Maybe so.

/Inferno: Mina: We should make a deal, no need to kill Zylanex for free.

Nix smiled at Mina. "Seriously... I may have corrupted you."

Halla sighed heavily and started rolling up the scroll. "What's our plan?"

"We'll kill Zylanex for you and in exchange for Elynmoor, you'll use your Spectrum to raise it under our banner." Nix studied the Che while he considered the offer.

"We'll be able to live in Elynmoor? The Che and the Drahk? We were planning on a mass exodus to the city if our mission was successful."

"Yes. We'll deal with Zylanex and dispose of Yandro before he manages to raise the city." Nix didn't think it was worth mentioning that they had already done the latter.

"We'll use our Spectrum to raise Elynmoor up once you've done that. It will be a free city where the great races of the Core can live in peace." Halla clapped his hands together. "We'll iron out the details after you manage the dragons."

Nix nodded in agreement. "I'll send a special team to deal with Yandro, in the meantime, we'll set up for Zylanex."

"The three of you can stay here while you make plans. How long do you think?"

Nix shrugged. "An hour or two."

"...." Halla.

Nix stood up and patted him on the back. "Prey waits."

An hour later Nix was in one of the guest rooms of Halla's home. The door was shut and he was speaking quietly to a holo image of Leva.

"I saw the opportunity and there was little danger." Leva's pale face was void of expression as she reported that she was able to dispose of one of Zylanex's chancellors.

"Does he suspect you?"

Leva shook her head. "It doesn't matter if he does. This is how things are done in the Nether when you want someone elses job. It won't be suspicious if I offer my services."

"He'll believe you killed the chancellor in order to take his place, which is exactly right." Nix considered his options. "The allies you call, will they fight for him? Or for you?"

"Nether chancellors aren't exactly the same as Breach Commanders Nix. Our allies take sworn oaths. They'll fight for me, no matter who I wish to attack."

"Offer your services then. Word it however you think best. Report back when you have news." Nix closed the contact and exited the room.

/Allied Command: Nix: Prepare for battle. Large rewards and lots of loot. Sometime in the next few hours.

[Direct Contact: Vooni]

Nix waited for a short moment before the dragon descendent popped up in front of him. She smiled at him. "Hey, Nix."

"Going to need you and all of Alpha Team. We're starting a fight."

Vooni nodded. "How long?"

"Hard to say, I'm hoping for a few hours." Nix wanted to talk to Fajii and Shae, but decided to focus on the task at hand first.

*****************

A short while later Ducky and the scouts from the Dias Fortress located the corpse of Hrazzi and his pets. As expected there wasn't much left of them, Ducky wrinkled her nose while they loaded up the corpse on a gurney and started walking back.

Hrazzi was placed in a containment cell and the black-hand disc was removed. One of the Drahk clerics rezzed him.

[Bewitched]

Duck has convinced Hrazzi that they are allies.

"Are you okay Azzi? I was so worried." Ducky sat next to him on the mattress, her pretty face showing concern.

"I think so. Were you captured also?"

Ducky nodded. "I was, but don't worry about me. I heard them mention something called Spectrum, the two of us are suspected of wanting to steal it."

Hrazzi glanced out of his cell and lowered his voice. "Is it here?"

"I heard them say that the scout team was burying it when you happened upon them." Ducky placed a hand on the Nether creature's thin leg. "A different group moves it every few hours so that no one knows its location for very long."

"Clever bastards." Hrazzi cursed under his breath. "If only I could get out."

"I can get us out," Ducky whispered. "The containment spells don't work on my abilities."

"Get me out of here and I will make it worth your while. You can join me in service to a great Overlord."