It wasn't long before the soft flap of wings sounded in the distance, letting Àskérian know that the Ardent Knights were on their way.

He stood from where he had been knealing at Ardent's side, and turned to face them as their silhouettes appeared over the dark line of tree tops. The edge of the field met with the trees as the ocean meets the sky, the verdant tendrils of grass waving gently on the Island's breeze.

Tiny silhouettes merged with the stars in the voided sky, but Àskérian knew that the figures were not stars, but six knights who were on their way to decide his fate with the Celestial realm.

After some time, the knights were close enough to make out each form. A large white-blue pheonix brought with it Lady Seraphina who was saddled on it's back by a golden adornment. On both sides of the bird, men and women strode in on soft nimbus clouds, each cloud a different irridescant hughe, that changed with the different light from the surrounding stars.

When they reached the treeline, the pheonix dropped lower and Seraphina jumped from it's back, landing on one knee, her movements graceful; a soft thud sounding with her landing, her one violet eye never staying from Àskérian.

The pheonix landed beside her, shimmering as it shifted, the elven form of Lady Rain took it's place, her peircing blue gaze trained on him as well.

Sir Pai and Sir Sekke landed beside them on their left, both knights stepping off their clouds that were left to float at the edge of the field, Sir Knight and Sir Manoj did the same on their right. All six remaining knights walked forward in a line, each footstep in sync with the others.

They stopped a yard away from Àskérian and Knight glanced at Manoj over his shoulder, and nodded something that the darker skinned man seemed to understand.

Manoj vanished and then reappeared behind Àskérian, kneeling at Ardent's side, Àskérian stumbled not expecting such fast movement, momentarilly awwed as he watched Manoj scoop Ardent up and vanish once more.

He spun around in search of the knight only to find him standing beside Knight again, Lady Ardent craddled in his broad arms. For the first time, Àskérian noticed that there was no sign of Sean among the knights. *Good* He thought, *they took care of him.*

"Speak." Knight commanded while six sets of eyes honed in on him.

Àskérian braced himself for the inevitable, these knights would chase him from this realm, but that didn't matter, because he knew of a way to end the dragon that noone else knew about, a secret he would keep and then use if he needed.

"What Sean said about me being a dragon rider is true." He began.

"I knew we couldn't trust you." Knight seethed, dragging his long sword from its sheeth. Àskérian noticed that he taken time to put his top armor back on.

Àskérian held up a hand, a gesture that was asking for patience from the other man, which made Knight snort with disgust, but he relented.

"Moria is the kingdom of dragons and riders." Àskérian continued. "My people thrive on the bond between dragon and human, we have done so for thousands of years."

The knights glanced at one another as they took in the revelation, before turning their gazes back to the dragon rider.

Àskérian lifted his eyes to the Celestial sky, its stars ever present and he secretly hoped he could draw on their brillance for strength as Ardent had. "Etah wasn't always deranged, he was a dragon without a bonded rider, a dragon with a mate." He said without removing his gaze from the stars.

"If so then what happened?" Sekke asked.

Pulling his wistful gaze from the sky, Àskérian spoke somberly, pain from the memory beginning to edge its way to the surface. "His mate died."

A sharp inhale came from Rain, he recognised the voice with it's birdsong sound.

Àskérian turned around to avoid their hungry eyes. "Losing a mate can drive a dragon mad, and with Etah, it did. I lost everything I loved, my home, my parents and my sister. I'm the only Morian left, that's why there are no others." He turned back around to face them and lifted his chin high.

"That still doesn't explain your obsession with Ardent." Knight threw at him.

Àskérian cast a glance over at their slumbering leader, she seemed so peaceful where Manoj still held her "I didn't chose to bond with Etah." He began again, "He cursed me by wounding me and enfusing his own blood with mine."

To put more force to his words, he turned around, removing his dark tunic and moved his hair aside.

Along his back, there was a scar. Raw red skin covered lean muscle, stretching from one shoulder blade to his opposite hip as it faded into the pale color of the rest of his skin in webs of scared tissue.

"Etah made me his rider for a reason, a taunt if you will. Im the last Morian, aside from Ardent, I'm the only one who can stop him."

"Are you saying that the Ardent Knights are useless?" Knight demanded.

Àskérian sighed heavily, then, re-garbing himself with his tunic, he turned back around. "I never said that, why do you think I want to be one of you?"

Knight relaxed a fraction. "Then what are you saying?"

Raising his head, Àskérian faced Knight, "In the ancient texts of Moria, there is a legend. Heaven guards the lineage of dragons closely. So when one goes berserk, they send in an angel to put and end to its chaos."

"And you think Ardent is that angel?" Knight questioned, as all the knights gave awwed glances to their queen.

"I don't think it, I know it."

"And how is that?" Knight seethed with disbelief.

"During my hunt for Etah.." Àskérian began. He told the story of how had traveled Gaia looking for the deranged dragon. "Then I came to a village that had been attacked by Etah." As he described the village, shocked gasps broke through the knights.

"Th - that's Alexhand!" Rain exlaimed. Àskérian nodded to confirm.

"But when we left it wasn't harmed at all, I mean a few buildings were being repaired but.." She broke off, casting an anxious glance at Knight.

"Are you saying the village was attacked again?"

"It looks like it." Àskérian answered. "But that's not all I found. Your leader was there. I found her inside a tower, she had cast a death spell on herself."

"No! You're lying! There is no tower! She wouldn't!" Rain protested, the other knights begining to bristle beside her.

"But she did." Àskérian cut them off before more protests were made. He held up his hands the same way Knight had when he thought he'd turned Sean into a butterfly.

"I don't know how, but when I touched her, the spell was broken. I didn't know what she was at first. It was dark inside the tower. But when she came to and went into the light..." He shook his head, "I wanted to kill her myself, but then,"

He looked up, " I saw her eyes. I saw the guilt."

"Guilt?" Lady Seraphina tipped her head. "What do you mean guilt, what does she have to be guilty for?"

Àskérian cleared his throat. "Think about it, every time someone leaves the realm," he pointed in the direction of the portal, "they subject themselves to a chance of being killed by Etah. And Ardent, she takes all the blame for that on her shoulders."

As his words sunk in, he could see understanding register itself on their faces. The same understanding that hit him during his first encounter with the angel.

"Okay, so what if she is this angel? What of she can't defeat Etah?" Knight demanded.

"Then I will." Àskérian vowed. There would be a steep price to pay, but all Àskérian wished for more than anything since he saw his sister die, was an end to the dragon who cursed himself the world.