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artistic-shapeshifter · 10 months

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Caught in a Haven

This ain’t my usual fluff or anything. Its actually a bit...darker So if you don’t feel comfortable with topics of animals being caught by poachers and chained up to be sold or abusive experiments or starvation and minor injuries, move along! Otherwise if you got the stomach for it (or some morbid curiosity) please enjoy this fic~! Summary: Ana is called to a meeting and has to leave her adopted animatronic sons for a few days. But when those few days are up, Sun and Moon get increasingly worried. Her family becomes scared learning that no one has seen her for a few days and quickly send out search parties to look for her. But can they find her before it's too late?

“Do you have to go?”

Sundrop had asked as he and his brother watched their dragon mother prepare to leave.

Ana gave her boys a soft smile. “You know I do firefly…yer nana needs me there at some of these meetings.”

“Can’t we come?” Sun frowned while Moon placed a hand on his shoulders.

“We got to run the daycare, Sunny…”

Sun gave a whine, crossing his arms and pouting. Ana hummed a soft chuckle as she moved closer and pressed her nose to his belly, getting sweet little giggles from the daytime jester.

“I‘ll miss you too sweethearts…but I promise I’ll be back as quick as I can and we can spend as much time together as you want.”

“…promise?” Sun asked, spinning his rays a little. He giggled again as his mother gave him another tickly nuzzle.

“Cross my heart. Now I need you boys to promise me you’ll look after each other while I’m gone.”

“We promise mom!” Both jesters chirped with smiles.

“Good, now come over here and give me a hug.”

Sun didn’t hesitate to bury his face into her chest fluff, hugging her as tight as he could. Moon hugged her snout, nuzzling his face against the bridge of it and giggling when her whiskers brushed against him.

“Be safe mom…” Moon begged knowing the trip to their Nana’s kingdom was a long one.

“Always am, moonberry.” Ana chuffed lovingly. “I’ll see you boys in a few days.”

Sun reluctantly let go, staying by Moon’s side.

“Bye mama..” he waved, watching as their mother made her portal to leave.

Ana had appeared in the forest and took a breath.

“Najada can wait a bit longer…it’s been a while since I’ve taken the scenic route.”

She smiled to herself and opened her wings, though she was unprepared for the sudden force that trapped the arms together. With a gasp of shock and pain, she turned her head to see a bola, trapping her wings together. Her ear twitched to a sudden sound, though she wasn’t fast enough to react to a large net falling over her.

Ana roared out trying to free herself, but she froze as she heard men shouting.

“Now now now! Before it gets out!”

Ana's pupil shrunk into her usual slit, fear and anger replacing her features. It fueled her to thrash more to escape the trap. Her maw opened, ready to let loose her electric breath. The back of her throat glowed as it prepared itself-

“Put it down! Put it down!”

One man opened a large needle with his teeth and stabbed it into Ana’s rear. The dragon dog hissed when she felt the needle enter her flesh….then her world went dark.

“Good. Get ‘er chained and muzzled. And be careful! Those scientists ain’t gonna want scratch on this beauty. And I’d like to get a pretty dollar for her…”

*****

A few days had passed. Ana hadn’t returned home yet….and her family was getting worried.

Moon walked into the room to find Sun hugging onto a plush bear, hunched over as if he was trying to keep his emotions in check.

“Sun…you okay?” The lunar animatronic asked as he carefully took a spot beside his twin.

Sun blinked away a few tears and shook his head.

“I miss mom…” Sun muttered, looking to the side to keep his brother from seeing his eyes begin to well up with tears. Moon frowned lightly and wrapped his arms around Sun, pulling him into a comforting hug and rubbing his back. “Yeah..so do I…” “She should be back now! She said it was only a few days but the week is over…where is she…?” “Maybe Nana needed her to stay longer, something probably came up” Moon tried to rationalize, he didn’t want Sun’s anxiety to take over and cause him to overheat from the sheer worry and fear alone…but deep down, something ate at his code. “Without letting us know…?” Sun sniffled. “It’s not like her…” Moon held back a sigh, knowing Sun was right.

Neither of the boys realized the clicking of heels outside the daycare. The end of the dress dragged across the floor as the newcomer continued walking. A hand held out and flashed a quick shimmering rainbow, unlocking the doors of the daycare and allowing the stranger the inside. Moon snapped his head up, standing when he heard the door open. “Is…Is it mom?” Sun asked, looking up at his brother. “I don’t think so…” Moon grumbled, quickly dropping on all fours and crawling like a stalking predator. As he got to the middle of the daycare, he blinked at the woman standing there. She wore a smile with bright red colored lipstick, her deep blue eyes on Moon. Her lavender dress shimmered in iridescence, a rainbow at the end of the dress that dragged on the floor like a tail. And bright orange hair rested at her shoulders, being held back from her forehead by a violet bandana with blue leaves and green clouds decorating it. “You…You shouldn’t be here ma’am…the daycare is closed…” Moon informed, deciding this woman didn’t seem dangerous. Though he was quite confused how she got in here in the first place. The woman gave a small chuckle. “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised you don’t recognize me dear, you’ve never seen me in this form have you?” Her voice was all he needed to strike realization in him. “Nana?!” “NANAJADA!” Sun cried out then, immediately hugging the woman. Najada did her best to keep her balance with her being smaller and weaker in her current form, it was simply to blend in. But she returned the hug. “Hello boys, it's good to see you, sweethearts” She pressed a kiss to Sun’s crescent, pulling back as she noticed the daytime attendant crying. “Sun-” “H-have you seeheeen mama?!” Sun blurted out, tears flowing down his cheeks. His big eyes never left his nana. Najada blinked at the question, she held Sun as she looked at Moon. “She’s not here?”

Moon shook his head. “She left a few days ago to attend the meeting you called her for…” he stated cautiously, not liking the expression on their grandmother’s face. “We thought you just had her stay longer than planned…” Moon was hoping beyond all else that Najada had answers. But the look she wore on her face gave him nothing but dread.

Najada rubbed Sunny’s back. She seemed afraid to say the words that were grasping her tongue.

“Boys…your mother never showed.”

Moon felt the code in his stomach drop, Sun hitched his breath and wailed fearfully into Najada’s dress.

“Sh-sh-sheheee’s mihihissiiiing?!” Sun blubbered.

“What could’ve happened?!” Moon demanded, trying his absolute best to keep himself in check. But he was just as scared as Sun.

“Boys now try to stay calm…” the elder queen soothed, rubbing Sun’s back and wiping away his tears. She didn’t have any answers for now…she knew Ana wouldn’t just disappear for days to play hookie…especially away from her boys.

“I don’t know where she is…but we’ll find her. I promise, I’ll even send out some help to get all eyes around where she might be.” “H-h-how will we know where she last was…?” Sun sniffed, looking up at Najada. She looked away in thought, simply stroking Sun’s rays for a moment. “Well…if I know your mother and if she didn’t come straight to the temple, she must’ve taken a portal at least close by…close enough to fly and feel the wind through her mane…” Najada hummed a moment. She shook her head. “I’ll send some allies to the surrounding forests…have them come here should anything be found. Just let me know when one of them does come by.” The brothers looked at each other. “Uhm…” “Nana we’ve never really…had a way to contact you. Usually Mom or Marie calls you to come by.” Najada blinked at Moon then but chuckled slightly. “Oh…how silly of me. Perhaps it is time I give you boys a gift.” She cupped her hands together then, her magic swirling together before manifesting two crystalized necklaces of a dove holding a snake in its talons. “These necklaces are imbued with a light magic like no other.” Najada explained. “It has been a symbol of our ever growing family for a long time.” She placed on necklace around Moon’s neck, then the other around Sun.

“The dove represents the everlasting love we share for each other and the hope we thrive upon. The snake represents the strength of our bonds and the closeness we share as a family.” “Wow…” Sun whispered. “A-and it’ll help find mom..?” Najada softened her expression. “It will help us keep in contact while we look for her…your mother has yet to accept this gift from me…but that is for other reasons that you boys have changed.” Before the twins could question that though, Najada continued on. “Simply think of me in your hearts and souls…and I’ll feel your call. The magic of these crystals connects us through light and love, for our hearts are always connected no matter the distance.” Moon wrapped his fingers around the crystal, using his thumb to stroke it. Hopefully they would find Ana…and soon… “I should move quickly now…you boys will know something as soon as we find it…and try not to worry. Your mother is tougher than titanium in both spirit and body.” Najada kissed her grandchildren before leaving through a portal…and leaving the twins to wonder where their mother could be and how safe she was…

*****

The rain pounded on the roof of the daycare. The thunder rumbled angrily. Soon the lights went completely out. Sun gave a yelp. “Mamaaaa!!” “Shhh…it's alright sugarstar.” A paw wrapped around his form, pulling him closer. Sun nuzzled into the dragon’s chest fluff. He hated storms, he hated the dark. Unfortunately there were a lot of storms in the summer. Some of them are stronger than others. And those stronger ones could be scary despite how strong the building was. Moon returned from his own patrol, holding a small lantern now to provide light. “Generators aren’t turning on…” The lunar animatronic rumbled in annoyance. “Think staff forgot to make sure they had power.” “It's alright boys.” Ana smiled, pulling both of them to her as the light from the lantern fell on them, glowing and flickering faintly in an almost cozy way. “We’re safe in here and I ain’t gonna let a thing happen to either of ya.”

Sun laid his back against their mother as she kept a paw around his middle. Moon laid against her shoulder, shutting his eyes with a hum and simply listening to the rain falling on the roof.

“Do you think the power will come back on anytime soon…?” Sun asked as he stared into the warm glow of the lantern. Ana glanced down at him, seeing how nervous her little sunshine was. She hummed, wiggling her claws over his silicone tummy. Sun couldn’t hold back the surprised squeak followed by a stream of giggles. He kicked his feet, the bells on his shoes jingling. “Even if it doesn’t, I’m sure we’ll find ways to keep our minds off the storm.” Ana chuffed lovingly. She noticed her other celestial son, peeking with one eye…possibly hoping to get attacked too. The dragon smirked, granting the naptime attendant’s silent wish and moving her paw to start scritching along his belly. “And I think getting these adorable giggles from my sweet lil sugarstars is a good place to start~!” Moon snorted, his gremlin laugh escaping him while his hands laid on her paw, though he made no actual effort to push the scratching claws away. “Moooahahahaaaam! Pfft! Khkhkhkh-snrkhehehehe!” Sun gave his own happy squeals and snorts of delight. Despite any protests, his rays spun around to show his clear joy. “Mahahamaaaa! EEP! -snort- Nahahahaaooo!” *****

Ana shot her eyes open with a sharp intake of air. Her ears twitched to the rattling of chains…Her chains. She blinked the tears out of her eyes. She wasn’t home in the daycare with her boys. She was chained up in a dimly lit tent, a muzzle around her snout and a bit in her mouth. She wasn’t sure why the bit was there, but it was uncomfortable as all hell. Her wings were tied against her back and sides. Shackles around her wrists and ankles that only chaffed her. She was so sore from trying to fight. The chains attached to the shackles were connected to large blocks of concrete embedded in the ground that Ana couldn’t even pull along. If that wasn’t enough, she was exhausted and starving. Not that she would take food from these bastards…but they weren’t taking that muzzle off any time soon. The most they did was stick her with protein and fluid shots, to keep her hydrated and give her the nutrients she needed to stay well and alive. Her ears flicked forward as the tent flapped opened. She kept her eyes on the two men that walked in. She recognized the one shorter and stout man, he was flabby everywhere with a dirt covered acne infested face. He was eating a taco that just dripped with everything in it onto the dirt…he always had food to taunt her with. The other man however was much taller, slicked back black hair and rectangle glasses sitting on his nose. His stare never left her…and for once, Ana felt a bit intimidated, though she didn’t dare to show it as she glared back. His coat was long, navy blue with black undershirt and black pants. “Quite the beauty ain’t she?” The fat man chuckled, nudging the half eaten taco toward Ana. “A fighter too. Might be of some use to ya and whatever cause you brainiacs are workin’ with” He took another bite, swallowing it. “Wuzzamatta girl? Ya hungry~?” Ana snarled at the man, doing her best to ignore the aching in her belly. The taller man grabbed the chains of her muzzle and pulled her forward, the bit clinking against the back of her teeth. Ana held back the cringe of uncomfortable pain as the man stared into her sea green eyes. His glasses reflected the slit pupil of her eyes. Ana saw something in the reflection of her eyes too…she saw fear. The man hummed then. “She still needs to be broken…even with that fear in your eyes…you still are more than willing to fight aren’t you…” Ana never broke eye contact, she couldn’t. The man’s dark brown eyes locked with her green ones. She felt her heart quicken, her breathing shorten in between each one. The man released her muzzle and turned to the other one. “Well Mister…Wasibi was it?” The shorter man chewed slowly. “Jujaki is fine.” “Of course…Mister Jujaki. I believe New Haven will have great use for this magnificent creature-”

“Oh, that'd be great Doctor Maverick! So how much we talkin-” “I wasn’t finished.” Dr. Maverick interrupted with an eye roll. “She would be a great use…however she still needs to be broken before we give you your payment and take her in…” Jujaki gave the scientist an incredulous look. “Broken? Look I’m all about trainin’ an animal to obey ya on every whim but uh…this ain’t a horse. It's a dragon.” “Any spirit can be broken Mr. Jujaki…” Maverick held Ana’s chin, once again locking eyes with her. “Any fire can be extinguished with enough perseverance and vigor…” “But…a dragon-” “Is just a beast, Mr. Jujaki.” Maverick stated harshly, releasing Ana’s chin and turning to the shorter man. “When was the last time she’s eaten or drank anything?” “Uh..” Jujaki counted on his fingers. “Probably three and a half days ago when we caught her. She looked well fed then. Since then, we only been giving her shots to keep her healthy and hydrated.”

“Keep it from her for the next 24 hours then.” “I…what?” “And tighten her chains, leave her absolutely no room to move. By tomorrow, she should be more than willing to cooperate.” Ana was beside herself in shock. She felt herself start to panic. She gave a muffled roar into close mouth and began to thrash about once again. Jujaki jolted back and immediately screamed for back up. As men flooded the tent, grabbing chains and prodding Ana with cattle prods, Maverick observed calmly, arms folded behind his back. Ana collapsed from the multiple shocks to her body, normally being an electric dragon herself it wouldn’t bother her…but she was already weak.

Ana watched as Maverick stood over her once again. She heard Jujaki barking orders to tighten her chains.

“You’ll break soon…I feel it already.”

Ana had passed out.

From the trees, violet eyes watched and listened. They saw what they needed to see and quickly made a run for it.

*****

Sun and Moon huddled together in the daycare. It had been a long day, trying to keep themselves in check and not worry the children. But the thought of their mother being missing and possibly hurt never left their minds. Moon looked over, finding Sun fidgeting with his necklace given to them by their nana. The lunar animatronic held back a sigh and pulled his brother close. “She’s out there somewhere Sun…” “...” Sun retracted his rays, leaning against Moon with a sniff. “I just hope she’s okay…I don’t want to lose her…like we lost Carl…” “I….” Moon lost his words for a moment, tightly shutting his eyes. “I know…Me either..” He muttered, remembering the pain of finding Carl gone. He turned his head quickly hearing Sun’s breathing start to hitch as if he was trying not to cry. “Sunny…” “I just want our mama..!” Sun wept, hiding his face against Moon. Moon felt his own eyes well up in tears. “M-me too…” Moon cried silently, letting Sun get his own emotions out. They both stopped hearing another noise enter their daycare though. Moon got up, wiping his eyes, before going to investigate. He stopped at the cloaked figure dropping at the animatronic’s feet. “M-m-Master Moon…I-I bring news…” the figure panted heavily as if they had run for miles. Moon blinked and whipped around. “Sun! Get some water! It’s one of nana’s friends!” Sun gave a gasp and hurried. “Oh my stars!” Moon helped the figure up, taking him to a spot to sit, which there weren’t many as most of the chairs were for young children. So he led the stranger to the edge of the ball pit, letting him sit on the cushioned wall. Sun brought a glass of water, offering it to the stranger. “Thank you…” he muttered before removing his hood from his head. Sun and Moon both blinked in surprise. He was a snake. A snake with arms and legs. His scales were maroon in color, a tan underbelly from his throat all the way down his torso. His head itself was black with grey markings around his eyes. The snake took long gulps, the water practically falling in rows down his long throat. He sighed as he finished the glass in just a couple moments. “Apologies. I am Commander Slink, second in command of the taipanai tribe. I was put in charge looking for your mother in the east side of the forest of your world. I’ve come to inform you of my findings.” “Wh-what have you found..?” Sun asked cautiously. “She is alive.” Slink started, getting sighs of relief from the two, which in turn made the snake hesitate to give the next bit of information. “But she has been captured…by poachers from the looks of it. It seems she had teleported close by. I only assume she meant to fly through a portal in the sky to her Highness’s land before she was caught.” “Poachers?!” Slink gave a solemn nod, before steeling himself to give the rest of the news. “I believe if we are quick enough we can get her out of there, but from what I’ve heard from the humans…we only have another 24 hours before she is sold.” “S-sold? Someone wants to buy our mom? Why?!” Slink shook his head, unable to answer Sun’s question. “Some human beings are greedy, some want power, some want riches, others just want to learn, but at the cost of hurting others, and not all of them care about who they hurt…” “How do we rescue her…?” Moon asked then. “If we don’t have much time to get her home, we should act right?” “Indeed, Master Moon. You and Master Sun need to contact Queen Najada, I was told you’d be able to once you were informed of the situation…I must return to my tribe myself and inform my general. Queen Najada has also requested her to deal with any injuries your mother may have.” Moon looked down, nervous but…this had to be done quickly to get their mom back…he looked up again

“Thank you for your help..” Moon smiled then as Sun suddenly rushed forward to hug the snake. Slink blinked a moment out of surprise, he awkwardly patted Sun’s back before clearing his throat and standing from his seat as Sun released him again. He saluted the brothers, an arm over his chest to his shoulder and a bow of his head. “May you have the speed of a fang…We shall meet again when my general comes to help.” Slink covered himself with his cloak again and took his leave. Moon looked at Sun. “Let’s call Nana…We got to get mom and quick.” Sun nodded in agreement before holding the dove and snake charm in his hands. Nana said he just had to think of her. So he did. He held the charm close to his chestplate, shutting his eyes and filling his mind with Najada. They heard the tell tale sign of a portal opening and immediately turned to see the lavender dragoness walk through. She looked at her grandchildren. “I felt your call Sun, what do we know?” *******

“Mom? Mom, wake up…” “Mom, you gotta get up silly! It’s time to spend the day together!” “If we’re going to get a head start on the day, we need you up and about.” She heard those giggles, those same bright adorable giggles she loved to hear from them.

“Mom…? Mom please…” Why did Moon’s tone change…what was wrong…? “Mama…? Mama open your eyes…Mama?.... MAMA! MAMA HELP! MAMAAAAA” SUN?! Ana woke up, once again in a panic. Her eyes darted around, trying to get a hold of her surroundings. Once again…she was disappointed. She was still in that dusty tent. It was dark…but she couldn’t tell if it was early morning or late at night. She tried to move, but the chains kept her still. Her legs were pulled so far apart she looked like a giraffe crouching down for water. The draconic canine felt tears swell in her eyes, dripping down her snout and past the metal muzzle. She was truly never going to see her family again…she wouldn’t see her boys again. Nor Najada or Marie, her family was ripped away from her. The only good thing she had in this life and they were now gone…She was going to be sold and used for who knows what…and more than likely killed. Then her debt would be paid- Ana was pulled out of her thoughts suddenly as she noticed a shadow out of the corner of her eye. It…looked human for a moment. God they were back…this was it… The tent flap was pushed open, Ana twitched an ear toward it. Her eyes widened at the woman that stood there. The woman gasped, holding her hands to her mouth at the sight before her. “Oh Ana…!” She kept her voice hushed as she rushed forward to hug the dragon dog’s snout. Tears flooded Ana’s eyes as she nuzzled against the woman as much as her restraints would allow.

“My poor daughter…I’m so sorry this happened. What have they done to you?” Najada used her magic to break the chains and muzzle off, she gently took the bit out of her mouth, watching as Ana moved her jaw and tongue around, grateful for the damned thing to finally be out. “I’m okay…mostly tired and starving but they haven’t done much to me…they wanted to keep me in good condition to sell me I’m sure…” Najada nodded. “You can tell me more later, we need to get you home now. Your boys are frightened for you.” “They’re okay?” Ana asked, as Najada broke the ropes tying her wings down and then the shackles around her legs. “Yes. I had to fight with them to get them to stay at the daycare while I came to rescue you. They just want you home…Can you fly?” Ana opened her wings and hissed, there was rope burn on the arms from the bola, and it didn’t look good after having her wings closed for so long without letting the wound actually heal. Then she had more burns on the tops and backs of her wings. “I-I don’t think so…nasty rope burn…” “Infected too…” Najada frowned. “Very well…this may make escape a bit more difficult. But we’ll have to make do.” She got underneath Ana’s stomach, and slowly transformed into her normal form. Being bigger than Ana, her daughter laid on her back as her wings stretched out. “Let’s get you home, love…” Ana nodded tiredly, home sounded nice. Slowly and quietly, Najada left the tent, keeping an eye out for the humans. They were farther up the way. Now was the time, Najada opened her wings and took off into the night sky. Her ear frills flicked at sudden yelling. They must’ve found Ana was gone now. Just in time. The rainbow dragon opened a portal and immediately flew through. Down below, someone watched the dragons disappear. Doctor Maverick. He hummed as the idiotic poachers panicked with their prize gone. “So there are more dragons in the world…fascinating…” Maverick rubbed his chin. “Here I thought they were extinct…but now that I know you’re still around, now my group and I can work out how to find and catch you…don’t rest easy yet, you magnificent beasts are just what we need…” ********

Moon paced around, waiting for their Nana to return with their mother. Sun hugged a pillow, part of his face buried in it. They’d be home soon…Nana promised they would. Slink had returned too, as promised with his general. A pretty maroon snake lady, with a black head and tan underbelly like Slink. She had a grey diamond shape on the center of her forehead, though unlike Slink, she had a tail instead of legs. She had explained to the boys it was a sign of her leadership and common for serpentine. She was nice and the boys liked her…especially as she promised to help their mom. The portal opened, and in flew the dragoness, landing perfectly. “MOM!!” The two attendants shrieked while Ana slid off Najada’s back. Her little stars rushed over and hugged her, both crying tears of relief. Ana immediately returned the hug, tears gliding down her own face and snout. “I’m okay boys, I’m okay…! God I thought I’d never see you again…” She kissed and licked Sun’s face a few times and bonked foreheads with Moon, licking his nose. “S-so..So did we..” Moon sniffed, giggling through his tears. Sun couldn’t speak from how much he was crying, choosing to just bury himself in his mothers chest fur, scared of her disappearing again. Najada smiled at the scene before her, before turning her attention to the two snakes in the room. “Lady Nevera…she has some rope burns on her wings, one of them being infected, wrists and ankles are bruised as is her snout from shackles and a muzzle…” The snake seemed to take a moment to take that information in before nodding. “Yes your majesty, if that is the worst of her injuries, I’m sure I can take care of them easily.” “Thank you.” Najada watched the snake get to work, she’d have something quick but… She turned to Ana who was now laying down and holding her boys. “Ana…What happened?” Ana looked up at her mother, her ears falling back in a T position as she had to recollect the past few days now. She gave a sigh. “I just wanted to fly…get some air, you know how much I love the wind under my wings…I thought I’d fly for a bit and then head straight to Mythikalia afterward. But as soon as I opened my wings…they ambushed me.” “Were they actually poachers?” “I…guess? They seemed more like bounty hunters. I didn’t hear any other animals there. You’d think poachers would catch more than just me…” Nevera slithered over, she had a wooden bowl full of a yellowish orange cream. “May I?” Ana nodded, she knew of the healing know-how of the taipanai. She lowered her head to allow Nevera to spread the cream over her bruised snout and the bottom of her jaw before moving on to her wrists and ankles. “Anything else we should know?” “They were…trying to sell me. To this man, I don’t know why but he made all my alarm bells go off. Just looking into his eyes…I haven’t felt so scared of a human in a long time…” “Who was he dear?” Najada pressed gently. “He mentioned…he was with New Haven?” Nevera, now on Ana’s back to take care of the wounds there, stopped at that name. Najada’s own eyes were wide. Ana took notice, looking between them. “...You know of it. Both of you” Najada gave a sigh. “Of course they’d find their way here…” Sun and Moon looked between everyone. “Are…are they bad?” Sun asked, cautiously. He knew the answer based on the reactions. “Aye sweetie.” Najada frowned. “Who are they? What did they want with mom?” Moon asked. “To experiment on her.” Nevera stated, as she gently rubbed the healing cream into the infected wound on Ana’s wing arm, getting a slight hiss of pain from her. “New Haven Laboratories are a group of humans who take in creatures they find to have the strongest qualities. Their goal is to create new creatures, either for the human military to use or for their own twisted reasons…” “These creatures are usually abused horribly…they may be altered drastically in mind and personality.” Najada frowned. “And if they got their hands on a dragon…who knows what they would do…” “They’ve even tried to make their own serpentine…we have a few snakes who are escaped victims of New Haven. Sadly…they aren’t well. Quedo and Cordella are well I wouldn’t exactly say fine, they suffer emotional and mental trauma more than anything. However, Pilo and Rapture are… it almost seems like their minds aren’t there. They both act like children. Pilo talks like a toddler trying to learn but Rapture? He only communicates in drawings, rarely makes any sound.” Sun retracted his rays. “How could anyone do that..?” “Some people are just cruel dear…” Najada frowned. “We cannot stop or fully escape darkness, but we can overcome it.” Moon huffed, hugging onto his mother. “We’ll really have to make sure no one finds out about mom…” “I’ll start going straight to the temple if they’re going to be out there..” Ana sighed. “No way am I going through that again…” Najada pressed her forehead to Ana’s, nuzzling noses as Ana rubbed her head against her adoptive mothers chin. “Don’t worry about it for now…you’re safe and you deserve time to heal and relax. I’ll only contact you for emergencies for a while.” Nevera slithered off of Ana’s back. Slink handed her a folded package made of banana leaves. She took it and handed it to the two jesters. “Alright boys, you make sure you put this on your mothers wounds every day until the cream is gone or the wounds are healed. It’ll help her recover faster.” Sun took the package as Moon nodded gratefully. “Thank you Miss Nevera…” Slink cleared his throat, carrying a bucket over to the dragon dog then. “This was also made for you by the Indies tribe.” He uncovered it, a strong smell flying into the air. Ana sniffed and sighed. It was a thick and creamy stew. From what she knew of the indies, they raised their own livestock and crops. So it was completely fresh. “God that smells amazing...” Nevera hummed a chuckle. “And the indies never disappoint with such things…we’ll leave you to rest and eat. I’m sure Najada will let us know should you need us again.” She turned to leave, her and Slink raising their cloak hoods to hide themselves. “And please…don’t be afraid to need us.” She smiled kindly, the two of them taking their leave. Sun got up to grab a bowl and help his mother eat so she didn’t have to expend much more energy. Najada once again nuzzled her daughter. “I have to leave myself…I should let Tonar know you’re okay…your boys have their necklaces should you need anything.” Ana nodded, tired and hungry. But she looked down for a moment and sighed. “Think you could make me one of those as well?” Najada tilted her head in surprise. “You’ve changed your mind now?” Ana lowered her ears and nodded. “I have family to count on…and should something happen again I should be able to let y'all know as fast as possible.” Najada smiled at that. She used her magic to form the necklace, then placed it around Ana’s neck. “I’m proud of you…you’ve come so far, dear.” Ana smiled, both dragons sharing another loving nuzzle. “Rest and heal…I’ll come check on you in a few days.” “Thank you…mom..” “Sun, Moon, take care of your mother.” Najada smiled, nuzzling her grandchildren. “I’ll see you all in a few days.” “Count on it Nana.” Moon smiled as Sun waved. “Bye Nana!” Sun held out the spoon to his mother. “Here mom, you need to eat.” Ana hummed a chuckle, lowering her head to let Sun spoon feed her the stew. It was warm and comforting…a reminder she was home. Home and Safe.

FIN

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