the cursed omen finale.

Crane could feel the end of everything starting to burden her shoulders much more than before as the atmosphere of her final standing ground held its breath. 

The trees seemed to be shuddering around her as the pines’ frond arms quivered with anticipation, rolls and ripples passing through the branches to make them sway. The snow crunched and grumbled underneath her talons with each pacing step, cold air whipping around and whistling in her ears with a capsulated tune while the frozen lake in front of her glinted with hints of sunlight doing its best to bore down on the thickened ice. The lake was slickened from the slight change in temperature as the world grew just a few degrees warmer with the welcome of spring, sweating away each layer at a grueling but steadfast pace. She was surrounded on most sides by the evergreen backs of the forest in a clearing, but the mountain stabbed upwards from the earth as well behind her with only the one visible cave as a speck nestled against the side in the distance.

Everything melting now from the incline in temperature, Crane’s mind quietly calculated as she watched the trees drop clumps of snow from their arms onto the ground below them from the newly gathered heat in the air, her eyes skimming towards the large mountain nearby and seeing the trickle of snowdrops puddling down the face of the rocky structure. Icicles dangling from the roof of the cave behind her were slickened and dripping as well, once creating icy fangs around the entrance now dulled to frozen molars as she watched it melt. Making it more mushy, easier to go through. The lake’s surface is easier to break; that could be a tool too.

And it is easier for that mountain to be two seconds away from an avalanche with the right nudge of the boulders above. Which is perfect.

Her eyes drifted up along the cliffs and crags, finding the very faint shape of Canary high above and waiting on the edges with his orders in mind as a dark clementine shadow within the crossing sunset of the sky glowering with its last bit of colors for the day. She remembered being up there not long ago to make sure it was all prepared ahead of time, showing him the specific boulders to push and the easiest ways to slip out afterwards while she explained it all as briskly and bluntly as possible to not let her voice waver with any emotion. There couldn’t be any second-guessing anymore; even with Canary’s creaky protests, Crane denied it all and promised him that it would work before diving away to her position now, hoping it saved her from seeing his anxious face.

It will work. It has to work. Crane’s eyes followed his pacing shape evident before her gaze fell back down to the clearing around her, situating herself as she finally sat down on a snowy mound right below the rise leading to the cave behind her while her gaze fixed on the trees across the lake. With her focus back on, she could feel another foreboding chill race up her spine and fasten behind her ears as it sank in with reality and grim determination of the events soon to play out. But my survival is not a guarantee. He doesn’t need to know that, though. No one needed to know that this was practically a suicide mission.

She could see the image of the large, handsome red dragon staring down at her now with eyes a mess of helpless love and despair when she whispered her ideas to him, already knowing the consequences she had come to terms with and kept pocketed in the back of her mind to save him the sorrow. She could still hear his protests and the guesses he made about whether it would work or not, listening to each gasping sob while he pleaded with her to find another way that would guarantee her return to him. She closed her eyes, trapping that image and feeling the agonized squeezes in her chest of his talons around her and the gentle, soft pink egg nestled in between them. It all felt as if it were still right there in front of her, her talons wrapped around the small spherical shape and then around his face staring down at her in tearful agony. 

I’m sorry, my love. Crane’s chest was aching endlessly, but the cold numbness of their reality continued to grip her and nullified the feeling as it slowly ate away the painful clenches. Her eyes turned to the sky drowning in darker hues, blinking rapidly to avoid any tears from falling. I hope there’s another way for me to survive, I really do.

But I’m doing this for us. For our friends, who will no longer be cursed with the Devotion burden. For my grandfather, so tainted by our family curse. And for our egg; for the life I want to give my child with no worries of any ancient curse. I want them to be safe, happy, with no worries of any of this. And this is the only way to make sure of that.

She closed her eyes and tilted her chin down, doing her best to breathe through the waver in her throat. She adjusted her wings where she sat on the chilled surface below, shaking her head and flicking her ears when she opened her eyes again to try and reel her mind back around to the plan formed a few days ago to give her something else to focus on instead. It’s all in motion now; we can’t stop it even if we want to. Hymn, Token, and Crowe go to find Novocaine and Omen. Distract Novocaine somehow, get him out of the picture, and get Omen here. Canary will wait for my signal, and I’ll get Omen into the caves. We’ll trap him in there, and maybe even…

Her brain faded away the last bit of it, growing hazy as the barrier between her focus and emotions wavered. She shook her head fiercely again, gritting her teeth to steel herself as she tilted her chin high again. And maybe then, with the rocks and the feeble tunnel construct… Maybe this will all finally be over. All of the curses will be put to rest. No more Omen. No more canary’s curse. It will all end here. I’ll make sure of it.

A few scattered tweets and bird calls resounded above her, Crane glancing towards the blanched blue sky scattered with coursing golds and oranges of sunset starting to sink through and melt into the sky. But as she glanced up to follow the trails of light with her eyes, she caught the flicker of golden wings and fleeting forms as they flapped and scattered stray feathers around Crane’s claws, decorating them in one last gift and symbol. She reached over and plucked one of them from the snow, brushing a claw along the many follicles it possessed as it shuddered under her touch. She exhaled thinly, eyes following the last traces of the birds as they vanished into the forest to watch the show from afar.

No more canary curse, Crane’s mind repeated as she listened to the ripple of the trees accepting the bird’s open wings. She tucked the feather into the snow, covering it with a talon before taking a deep breath and staring out beyond the lake once more. No more of the curse that’s haunted me for years. I won’t need to look over my shoulder anymore.

No more canary curse, no more Omen curse. No more curses. This is it.

The world took one last deep, shuddering breath around her as it all seemed to still. Crane’s ears flicked uneasily at the silence, watching the trees cease in their swaying and the flutter of birds fade away while she stared around slowly and the furs along the back of her neck started to rise. The only thing she could hear was the distant calls of a howling gale and the loud thud right behind her ears of her quickened heartbeat, dribbling warmth around the tips of her rounded lobes and throughout her body. 

Too still now…

But then the trees started shaking even more, the grove in front of the frozen lake shuddering violently while the earth began to hum below her claws. She stood up and kicked off excess clumps of snow building up around her claws, staring down at the ground as the humming turned into a rapid quake of talons pounding down towards her, her head whipping up in alarm as her wings stretched out expectantly with a few more adrenaline-spiked heartbeats kicking her into gear. The world seemed to all wake up at once, birds shrieking once more and the trees hissing in fear that matched her own bared teeth clenched tightly as she waited. 

Here they come.

The pounding at the other end was steadily growing louder, more trees shaking and trembling as they cloaked up the racing forms coming towards her. She could see the shadows below the branches dipping and swaying, tossing a figure back and forth as they darted towards her in a rapid dash on long legs. Crane took a step towards the approaching figure, squinting to see with a twist in her chest. Who is it? Is it Omen already? Don’t tell me he got around the others; please tell me they’re alright before this all goes down.

She didn't have to guess or wait too long for an answer; the figure never slowed and barreled into her clearing without hesitation, flinging his scattered blue wings out to slow some of his sprinting while he skidded along the lake’s surface. His claws shrieked in a horrible melody across the ice as he fought for a grip, whipping his head back around as blazing green eyes glowered back towards the path he made in the snow with frenzied blazes and hurried breaths. The blue form was both a welcome and worrying sight to Crane, his tail lashing behind him to steady himself out while he carefully eased himself off of the threatening cracks and splits of the lake below him with a wary look down at the crumbling surface he edged off of.

Hymn! Crane took another step towards him, wings flapping to gather his attention. When he finally turned back towards her, she let her words come out sharp and hurried, “Where’s the others?”

Hymn shook his head while he caught his breath, seeing a glimpse of frustration in his expression before he waved his wing towards the forest beyond. His answer still came out in hustled rasps, flinted by his peaking fear, “Crowe and Token are busy with Novocaine; they got caught up with him. But Omen…”

The blue PeakWing fell silent, a distant thundering roar and the continued quakes in the ground below them answering Crane’s questions as they both lost their balance briefly to the shaking earth around them. Both of the dragons whipped their heads back around towards the trees across the lake, Hymn standing taller and bristling while flexing his talons readily. Crane kept her wings outstretched and her eyes focused on the distant rumbling and shaking of the forest, only seeing the shadows for now as they rippled with more heartbeats pounding around her ears and nullifying any other thought in mind.

But then a glimpse of sunlight caught in between the branches, lighting up the crowned and antlered horns on the large beast’s black head as it roared again, all of the world quaking from his cry. Large talons thudded towards them, his dark appearance making it seem as if he was carrying the darkness with him as he soon barreled into view. Crane squared her shoulders, the high pitches of fear and anticipation making her wings tremble despite her jaw tightening. 

Omen. He’s here. It’s time.

The large dragon didn’t relent; didn’t falter in his pursuit as he crashed through the last spines of the forest before he blew out into their clearing with a leap that landed him on the edge of the lake between them all. Crane felt her vision and body sway uneasily from his towering size rivaling the pines behind him, his maw agape with jagged teeth and flecked with spit and blood as he glowered at the others with his blinding pure-white eyes. A long hiss drawled from his throat, the icicle growths on his mane and shoulders shuddering from the noise while his wings stretched further to make his appearance already humongous despite his towering size.

Three moons… I forgot how big he was. He towers over even Mulholland, one of the biggest dragons I’ve been around… He really is just an ancient curse.

Crane waited to see if Omen would say anything first, perhaps to curse them more or yell further. But the large and ancient dragon didn’t speak, only drawing out the hiss that rattled his teeth as he placed one shaggy talon threateningly towards them. Hymn’s eyes flicked between the two, a lingering tension coiled between all of them while they faced off in the snowy clearing in a terse silence.

Here goes nothing then. Crane’s claws flexed further below her, driving deeper into the snow before she stepped forward again and growled to the large representation of death itself, “This ends here, Omen. Just like you wished. One curse facing another. No more bloodshed. No more killing innocents or hurting my friends. No more ties to Devotion and dragging other poor dragons into it. This ends now.”

“No,” Omen hissed thinly at last right after her speech, sounding as if vipers were caught deep within his chest. His wings spread out further, tattered as she saw the eye-like imprints on the underside flashing at her with taunting glares. “Devotion is forever. Your blood will fuel the new generation. You will die, and the curse will live on.”

Hymn let out a growl near Crane, even as she took a slow step towards Omen in return but kept the lake in between them with another deep tug of fear somewhere within her gut. She did her best to keep her voice low, airing it rigidly towards him as she stared into his paled sights, “It doesn’t have to be this way, Omen. It didn’t have to be this way. You chose this, and you’ve left us no other choice. This has to end now, and there’s no other way than to put a stop to you. Whether it’s by death or not, this all ends now.”

Another long hiss erupted from Omen’s mouth, stepping forward again with no intent in listening further as his gaze flashed with centuries-deep rage and desire with his inclination towards her. The lake underneath him cracked further, Crane glancing down and seeing the fissures darting through the mirrored ice and only a few steps away from her claws teetering on the edge. Hymn let out a hiss of warning in return, puffing himself up with wings spread hauntingly while Crane’s gaze flicked up the mountain beside her and the ridges sticking out above. She could almost feel Canary’s eyes watching her from way beyond, filled with anxiety and fear for what’s to come. I hope he’s ready.

A snarl left Omen’s mouth now as he took another taunting step, Crane whipping back around towards the monster with her teeth bared, but further rustling in the distance caused her eyes to stray again as they caught the movement. She could see it in the trees; more vigorous shuffling of something moving around, flickers of figures within before one shape came through the trees and quickly hustling through the snow, Crane’s heart twisting at the familiar two-headed PeakWing heading their way with quick steps. Truth and Ideal? What are they doing here?

“Stop!” One of the heads on the conjoined body shouted, the other head squinting and focusing on the movement of the talons below instead as she came charging in, doing their best to lope through the layers of snow below. Truth’s mouth was gritted with concentration, planting her body between Hymn and Omen while Ideal’s head was stretched towards Omen with her plea, the small cherub wings on their back outstretched to him. “Omen, stop! That’s enough!”

“Ideal!” Crane hissed faintly once in warning, trying to take steps closer to her now, but she kept herself away with Truth’s warning look. The one head gave a small shake, Ideal completely focused on Omen instead as Crane’s wings fluttered helplessly. Why are they here? I told them talking to him wouldn’t work; no matter what kind of history they have, nothing would work.

“I’m sorry,” Truth offered to her as some sort of substance, eyes flicking between hers and Hymn’s surprised expression of his own that signified his lack of knowledge to their arrival. The head bowed further before meeting Crane’s gaze directly, shaking her head once more. “Ideal wanted to try, and… We wanted to try. We had to.”

Then Truth turned back to the black form in front of them, both heads now giving attention to the larger dragon. Omen didn’t recoil back, only hissing louder with only a lapse of surprise cutting through briefly before his brow furrowed further and his teeth bared in a scowl. Hymn backpedaled away from the two older dragons, shooting Crane a worried look, but she could feel her chest twisting painfully once more as it constricted at the sight of the smaller dragon facing the beast. She’s going to get themself killed.

“Omen,” Ideal murmured, stirring Crane’s attention back to them. Truth was still ducked to keep the attention on the other head, glowering up at Omen, but Ideal was the one spreading their wings out in an act of innocence as it matched the desperation in her eyes while she stared at Omen head on. “Listen to us. We can cure you. You don’t have to be this beast you’ve made yourself into; we can work together and get you out of this curse so you aren’t hurting anymore. We can find a way that doesn’t kill you; we can. We’ve worked with stuff like this before; if you let us, it can be a new beginning for you.”

“And you wouldn’t be hurting others anymore either,” Truth noted, tilting her chin only slightly upwards to narrow her eyes at him. Their talons gripped the snow, a hint of their anxieties while their tail lashed behind her. “We can’t promise you amnesty or forgiveness, but we can at least give you freedom. You can go wherever it is, away from us, and make your new life. Isolated but free; it’s better than this dragon you made yourself into.”

“Please,” Ideal murmured, finishing it off and cutting off the other head as she chanced a tiny step closer to the beast. She stretched one talon out towards him, her face aglow with hope and making Crane’s heart sink at how desperate and pleading it was. “We can help you. Please give us a chance. And give yourself a chance to become better. Please. For your kin and whatever future you have left.”

Hymn’s eyes sparked with the familiarity of it, Crane seeing the blue dragon’s wings droop and a wince course through him. But Omen didn’t appear repentant at all; steam boiled around his snout from his open maw, the brief surprise on his expression now vanished as it was replaced with a deeper rage accented by his heavy snarl in response. Truth and Ideal took a step back, Truth ducking her head again but Ideal watching him with the same pleading expression as before.

Some dragons won’t ever change and let themselves become this monster every time, Crane’s mind quietly noted, a dull hum as she winced with her own memories of all of the members before that they had fought and coaxed out of the Devotion mindset. Even Hymn beside her was part of those memories, the constant gnawing feeling of anger and despair around him now replaced with weary acceptance as they shared their own weary despair-filled look between the two. Even Hymn, the leader of it all, wanted to change and wanted that freedom. But he’s had to fight for it each step, and he continues to fight for it despite the constant rebuttals.

Would Omen fight for it? Does he actually want that chance? Would he follow his supposed grandson, Hymn, and listen to us?

But from what Crane could see, there was no shred of any sort of mercy in Omen’s blank but furrowed eyes. Instead, the dragon seethed as more steam and smoke writhed around him before he bared his teeth at the two-headed female again, snarling only one word from deep in his chest that confirmed his answer, “Coward.”

Truth bared her teeth in return, Ideal’s expression collapsing as they finally stepped back in defeat. But Omen reared up entirely, his form appearing doubled in size as he balanced on his hind limbs and opened his mouth once more while a deeper hiss crawled from his depths. As Crane heard the familiar sparks from within his throat, she felt a twist of fear as she shouted to Truth and Ideal, “Get down!”

Truth whipped her head around towards her, eyes blown wide, but Hymn was closer and quicker to react as he lunged forward and tackled himself around the smaller PeakWing. His wings wrapped around her, careening all of them away just in time for a rounded fireball to shoot past their shoulders and blast into a patch of snow right behind them where they originally stood. The snow hissed and soothed the charred grounds, but the dark ashen marks remained and smeared out the pristine white grounds around it.

Hymn stood over the purple dragon while she trembled underneath him, tenting his wings over her and baring his teeth at Omen in fury. But Crane didn’t risk any sort of attention to linger on them; she inhaled sharply and felt her own sparks crackling within her teeth and back in her throat as she blasted her own ball of flames towards Omen to smack against his shoulder. A scream of rage came from him, hollow and full as she watched the flames lap briefly around his black fur and against the spired icicles sticking out from his body before it resumed to normal, followed by a trill hissing noise while it extinguished.

Omen whipped his head around to Crane, who was spreading her wings wide again and baring her teeth as she shouted towards him, “That’s enough! No more delay; it’s just between me and you now! As it always should’ve been! Now come and get me!”

Omen’s ghostly eyes fixed on her, the whole world teetering as the two cursed dragons stood off against each other. Crane stood her ground firmly, a threatening talon stepping towards him and lingering on the edge of the lake as her chest heaved with breaths and with how fast her heart was pounding. Come on, Omen. I’m the one you want. You won’t kill any more innocent dragons. I won’t let that happen.

But then the world snapped, all of it tunnel-visioning as Omen let out one last bellow of rage before he fell back onto all fours with a loud thud and crack, followed by a chorus of more crackles and snaps as he bore down and sprinted towards Crane across the frozen lake. It snapped and broke apart underneath him, waves frantically rushing around the back of his talons and the slabs of ice dipping and submerging in the storm of water.

Crane’s claws flexed and drove down into the snow before she finally turned and bolted, leading the massive dragon away from the other two off to the side. She could hear Hymn shouting her name, followed by Truth and Ideal both, but Crane didn’t stop as she listened to the splintering of the lake’s surface while Omen tore after her. She had enough sense to send up the signal for Canary; another bulb of flame shot upwards from her mouth in a fast sputter, shooting high in the sky towards the tops of the mountain that her grandfather waited in while she yelled as loud as she could, “Now, Canary!”

There was a shuddering moment where her sights fixed on the tunnel in the distance, no movement noticed from high above and a flash of fear that her signal was missed. But as she closed into the target, she could feel the gentle quakes of the mountain as boulders and mounds above were moved around and making their way down in waves of miniature avalanches, more storms and disasters brewing with deep grumbles and groans. Crane picked up her speed, her senses pitching with the further trembles under her as she sprinted towards the yawning entrance. Her heart kicked further with Omen’s closing roar, using her wings to propel her further. Just keep going; just get him in the cave!

The hill sloped up, leading to the entrance as Crane finally shot into the covered tunnel with drier but moistened cobblestone as she shot through the carved passage. She could see it now; the whole story of Devotion scratched alongside her quickened steps as it trailed out the history of the past, patches of empty walls left to continue the story. The clamped space made her panting louder and closer to her ears, her claws clicking sharply on the pathway while her winds folded tightly into her side. The bellows of Omen were closing in, but some distance had passed with firmer ground under her claws making it easier to run on.

No time to look at the walls. Just keep running; get to the cave.

She was able to get into the very end cave before he caught up, rounding and coming to a halt in the center of it. She could feel even more quakes from the mountain around her, as well as deep rumbles and groans while shelves of snow started seeping in from the peak of skylight above filtered through a straw-like hole. All around, the cave was carved with images of Omen, as well as long branching lines of family trees from the days when Devotion first began. Crane could see her own family line tucked away in a corner to the side of it all, making her heart jump before pressing it down as she flinched from another loud rumble and deep groan of the walls.

No more, She promised to the lines cascading around her, slamming her eyes shut briefly. She could feel the tears springing into her eyes, listening to the mountain’s last symphony humming around her while the images of her friends, lover, and even her foes crossed her mind. No more suffering at the claws of a moonsbegotten curse for anyone. No more ties to a group full of so much malice and hate. We are free. Everyone will be free.

No more pain. No more suffering. We are free.

Another roar came from the tunnels, reverberating down to her and shaking the walls even more violently than they already were. She could see loosening stones around her, starting to tumble to the floor and tremble while the rest of the world continued groaning and lurching around her. Crane opened her eyes again and faced the incoming danger, but she could feel a grin forming on her face despite the tears staining her cheeks.

Thanks to Canary, though, I shouldn’t have to do much work. It'll be the mountain and the spirit of the Canary’s Curse, of being in a cave system like this. Killing the curse, doing one good thing in our lives. He helped avenge himself with this; I hope it works for him.

I hope this works. But if not, then I’ll kill him with my own claws. And even if that means dying along with him.

The last of Omen’s shrieks came through as he closed in on her cave, one last whisper uttered under her breath alongside the shuddering and crying of the cave and mountain around her as a wink of an image with her and her grandfather came into view, “Spirits guide me. Protect me. And end these curses once and for all. Be with me.”

Then her eyes flashed open, right as Omen came steaming in with eyes alight in hatred and his large shadowed form swallowing up nearly half of the space. Another deep roar came from deep in his gut, rearing up and leaping towards Crane to clear the rest of the distance. 

Crane bared her teeth, but she let the tearful grin split across her face. And as she leaped towards him in retaliation, the world seemed to collapse around them.

-

The caving in of the mountain and the loud groans of the boulders under Canary’s claws were the first sign of the end of the world.

But he could feel it underneath him, feel the deep rumbles and groans as the mountain shifted and folded in on itself that some sort of collapse was occurring due to his movements despite his granddaughter’s promises. Canary trembled where he was, wings spread out to balance himself while his eyes flashed desperately to the minuscule forms down below. 

Where’s Crane? His mind instantly shot, trying to look around desperately for her flashes of bursting orange. But he could only see the vanishing form of a large dark tail as it shot into the cave system, one last roar having residual shudders travel up the mountain and making Canary shiver before feeling another rumble shake his stance with a lurch of fear in his chest. Where is she? She had to have escaped, right? She said she’d find a way; she promised Mulholland and I she’d find a way and come back to us!

But the mountain giving away under him held no promise, and the deep groans and utters of the rocks and stone made him stumble and grip onto the surfaces with a cry of alarm. It felt as if it was turning into rolls and falls of rocks, making Canary shriek when they almost toppled him over the edge as they shifted and fell down the side of the hill.

“No!” Canary found himself shrieking now out loud, trying to stretch his wings for more balance, but he was trembling too much anyways for a sure grip on anything. He could feel his breaths hitching, sobs starting to wrack his throat as his claws helplessly reached down below with his sobs. “No, no! This wasn’t supposed to happen! Crane!”

The world didn’t listen, and the mountain especially did not cease in its downpour. Canary felt the cleft of land he was on give way, and he let out a shout of alarm before he caught a glimpse of golden orange glory streaking through the clouds and sky above him as he toppled and fell into the masses of snow-covered rocks making their way down the mountain. The sky was the only solace he could find, traces of light winking in and out from the freezing shovel of snow more frequently dusting over his face.

Canary locked his eyes with the clouds and the universe above, doing his best to blink away the tears while his heart stuttered with the reality of losing grip on his steady ground. Rocks were starting to painfully press into his sides and wings, agonizing pinches from his back talons being crushed by rolling stones as a few gasped sobs left him again. My granddaughter’s death, all of this, the avalanche… It’s because of me. She told me to do this, but it really was putting her to her own death. I can’t save her. I shouldn’t have listened to her. I’ll be the reason she’s dead.

But maybe she saved us. Maybe our family curse has finally been severed. Maybe now we can all have different lives. Peaceful lives, with no curses and no fear of the future. Maybe they can be free.

And maybe that’s enough for me. Maybe there’s no purpose for me anymore.

The cliff side became mixtures of mud and a brewing avalanche, feeling the slipping ground further giving way under his talons and nearly swallowing him whole. There were shouts of warning below him, but Canary simply closed his eyes and soaked in the last chill of his waking life. He stretched his talons up to the sky, hoping he was able to hold the sky in the last frantic heartbeats he had. It’s okay. I’ve had a good life now that I’ve met Crane. And if it means getting to see her again, I’m okay with letting go.

But then a louder noise was swarming over him, a distant shudder now a louder thudding as he cracked his eyes open briefly to see a shape bee-lining towards him from below. He could see long arms outstretched towards him, Canary blinking and trying to register who it was until the claws were wrapped around his own and yanking him out of the rubble with painful scrapes against his hips and tail.

He let out a startled shriek, suddenly being tugged into the air. But when he looked up at his savior, a familiar dark face was staring down at him desperately. Even though the time didn’t call for it, Canary couldn’t help a leap in his chest as Penumbra’s eyes connected frantically with his as she shouted to him, “I’ve got you! Fly, Canary!”

Canary’s wings trembled vigorously in the air, but he did his best and finally found enough current under them to stretch out, supporting Penumbra with his own flight as her talons stayed wrapped around his own to guide him away from the collapsing mountainside. Another pair of wing beats joined theirs, catching a glimpse of Hymn clutching Truth and Ideal to his chest with all of his talons, Hymn staring in horror alongside Truth while Ideal’s head wailed in despair at the crumbling sights. 

Canary and Penumbra both hovered in the air, clasped to each other as his heart thudded in agony at the waves of snow cascading down in billows of frost and thickened clouds from the avalanche. He tried to wrestle free from her clutches, but Penumbra held him tight as his granddaughter’s name was screamed out in mangled sobs with the realization of his survival and her demise, “Crane! Crane!”

But there was no one to respond. And as Canary watched, helpless and agonized with the sky darkening and the world closing off any hope he had left, the avalanches kept rolling and steaming over until there was nothing left of the field below but piles of snow and the two dragons destined to die below it all.