It took nearly the rest of the night to move each body to a hidden place. Jetstream was now in the comfort of the mud hut and his wounds were being taken care of. The two Sandwings were covered by leaves and mud, but they were not buried. Too much time was put into moving each fully grown dragon and the sibs did not care in those moments to put the attackers of their teacher to proper rest.
Leafall and Alligator were examining their work at covering the dead bodies making sure that not a single scale would show. As Alligator began to go back to the hut to see how well Mud and Treefire were healing Jetstream, Leafall was unmoving.
"Are you going to stay out for a bit?" He asked.
"Did we do the right thing? Should we feel bad that we killed them?" Her voice was soft and somber. It was like her brother's question didn't reach her hearing.
Alligator turned back seeing the lifeless eyes peering out of the camouflage of the ever changing scales. "If it helps, you can imagine them as big bagers."
"But they could speak and think like us. What if they like sitting in the sun like us and were just doing what was right. You heard them, Jetstream stole from them, which makes sense. How else could he have gotten all that we have? What if they were the good guys?"
Tears streaked down Alligators face. With shock and regret, Leafall watched as her brother cry for the first time in a long time.
Trying his best to keep his face dry, Alligator said, "I didn't know what to do. Jetstream was getting hurt and I..."
The two stood there for a time as Leafall tried to comfort the strongest among them.
There wasn't much time after Jetstream's wounds were healed that the siblings took a chance to sleep. Every wince and grown kept them awake in worry, but nothing would happen. When they did all fall asleep, they didn't wake up until the sun was nearly at its peak. Mud was the first to wake up and at first he did not see Jetstream where he was sleeping the night before. His worries were quickly dashed once he saw Jetstream standing next to the book shelf. However, what would have once stood a strong and almost noble dragon was painfully replaced by a purple and crippled dragon.
"Jetstream, you should be resting." Said Mud to his teacher. Despite the order, Jetstream continued to look through the shelves as his breathing could be heard and his movements were slow. "If you need a scroll, I'll get it for you. Please lie back down."
"I must be the one to give it to you. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do it in person." When Jetstream reach out his claws for what he was looking for, he pushed through the pain and sores but could not muffle the sound caused by them. This lead to Mud waking up his brother and sisters.
Once everyone was awake but before Mud could explain the problem, Jetstream had placed his whole body back on the floor next to the book shelf. Though the sibs were concerned for his well-being, they were instead looking at the scroll separating them from their caretaker.
The scroll was like any other scroll that they had, but this one had a seal on it. The design on the seal was like the inside of a tree branch.
Treefire was the first to ask, "What is this?"
"A letter to both instruct you on where to go and an explanation for as much as I could put on that paper. I wish I could say more."
"Then say it now." Said Alligator. "Why wait for us to read a piece of paper when you're right here and can tell us yourself!"
"Alligator-"
"You have been always there for us. You would never abandon us like our parents and you won't cast us aside like them either."
"Enough! AAhh!" Jetstream roared with a painful dominance. The sudden lurch of his body threatened to open his wounds wider forcing him to keep still and quiet for a while.
As for Alligator, his eyes stung from his own words and ended up swallowing them as Jetstream winced in pain.
Jetstream looked at all of them knowing that if Alligator didn't say anything the rest would have. Alligator wasn't too much older than the rest, but Jetstream left him in charge as he was the first to hatch. But as strong and reliable as he was, Alligator was always afraid of being alone. He was the one keeping his family alive for all the time before Jetstream came along and he did not want to be left to defend them against the world.
Even still, thought the tired old dragon, "I've been planning this for a long time. It's not right for all of you to stay here forever when the world is so big for you to explore. At least, that was the initial thought." The dragonents did not falter with their attention of Jetstream hanging on every word. "I have done many things to keep you all alive, educated, and comfortable. Through these actions, I have made some very powerful enemies and they are numerous. Before I could just simply run away and hide until the time was right to go back out, but no more. By killing those Sandwings you have paved the path for more to come."
"They gave us no choice then." Treefire spoke up. "Besides, we took them out easily in the open. If more come, they will have to come into the forest where we have the advantage."
"Have you forgotten they could easily burn down the forest with their fire breathe or that their number far surpass the messly four of you? In no time at all, they would overwhelm you."
"And so your plan is to send us out there?"
"They would only be after me. As far as they know now, you don't even exist let alone spend resources looking for you."
Mud proceed with saying, "But if we leave without you, they will find you and then-"
"Quiet arguing with me! AAArrrah!" Another stab of pain went through Jetstream. He couldn't keep exerting himself like this.
As gentle as the wind, Leafall walked up to Jetstream and spoke her own concerns. "Jetstream, even if we left we don't know where we would go or what we would do. If you are truly saying we should leave you behind, I'm sorry but we can't imagine a world without you. We will keep you safe just as you have for all these years. Just tell us how." Leafall wanted her mentor to submit to her word like he usually did. Maybe he would groan in frustration, but he would be happy to comply.
But his eyes did not look irritated. No, they were smiling and reflecting the beautiful colors on Leafall as she realized that he was not going to change is mind.
"It doesn't matter what you do. You are all good and well meaning dragons and I want you to experience the world as it is. Meet others, find your parents, or even be the ones to change the world again. I promise you will find more reasons to live and explore out there and I want you to do it with glee. Make a dream and follow it to the ends of Pyrrhia."
"And what about your dream." Asked Mud.
"I may not be able to see it to fruition." A somber silence fell within the hut as Jetstream didn't know how to continue. His dream was always on his mind and was always moving him forward. At one time, he thought he was able to do anything to see it come true.
Throughout the conversations, Alligator was quiet and thinking. He wasn't about to let a good dragon to be punished for helping his family. Soon, a thought came to him.
"We'll have to prove you're innocent." He said out loud.
Everyone looked to him with Leafall asking, "How do we do that?"
"We are the proof. If we show the other dragons that we exist, then we can explain to them why Jetstream did all the things he did."
Jetstream was astonished that anyone would even suggest such a thing. His jaw was wide open.
Not recognizing the shock on Jetstream, Leafall continued the conversation. "That makes some sense. But how will we prove that Jetstream was the one that took care of us?"
"We could bring something that he stole. Something distinct and recognizable."
Treefire said, "But most of the stuff we have are disposable. There is no way we have something that valuable on us." Everyone else began to think furiously of all the things they had. This plan was the best plan they had, so surely something had to work. It had to.
Jetstream, on the other claw, had given up on trying to get them to forget about him. The dragonets were just that, and they were not going to be swayed by logic. Moreover, he was not willing to have his story end here. With a groan, he gained their attention and said, "Take my notebook; the one I've been writing about you in since I found you all. Take it to the Kingdom of the Sea and show it to the current queen. Tell her who sent you and try to convince her to help."
Leafall, happy to see Jetstream had finally submited(even if it wasn't by her alone), asked him, "Why would they listen to us even if we bring your notebook?"
Mud continued. "And isn't the Kingdom of the Sea underwater? I can swim pretty well, but I don't know if I can hold my breath long enough to get there."
Addressing them both, Jetstream said, "The notebook is primarily for proving that I was the one who sent you. While the Kingdom is your main destination before confronting the Sandwings, it is not your first stop. You need to go to the places described in the letter. There you will find a Sandwing who will help get you to the Kingdom of Sea and after, find a Nightwing who will be your political voice."
"Wait, you know a Sandwing AND a Nightwing?" Alligator asked in bewilderment. "If that's the case, we could just skip going to the Sea Kingdom and just ask them to clear your name."
"It's not that simple. You'll understand once you find them, but simply put these dragons I'm asking you to find are both deviants. If you can convince them both, your journey should be much easier."
None of the sibs understood what Jetstream was trying to say about the dragons they were meant to find, but as he said, they would learn in time. Besides, they should be good dragons if they knew Jetstream.
Treefire asked, "When should we leave, and how much time do you think we have?"
Jetstream thought for a moment; no doubt doing calculations in his head. "It will depend on how fast the Sandwings noticed some of their own are missing. Hopefully by that time, I should be healed enough to move around and hide in a different place."
"But if you do that, how will we find you?" asked Mud.
"You'll find a way I'm sure. For now, focus on succeeding before my well being." Jetstream looked up at the sibs one more time. They were determined now; come what may. For Jetstream, he couldn't help but smile at them form the pride in his heart that overflowed in him. Deeper still, his soul was crying. It was there the feeling of treachery swelled. Was he not giving these inexperienced dragons false hope for a fate that was practically sealed? He believed that now was a good time to send them out in the world, but what if they failed? Would they scorn Pyrriha as an unfair place? Would they reject his teachings for a darker solution? Will their heart stay good in nature or twisted with malice?
Calm down Jetstream. Your acting like a parent. He thought to himself. Except he was a parent. He was their parent who was concerned that he did not teach his children enough to survive in this world of dragons. But he had to give the quill to them now. They must finish their story.
The sibs hunted a feast of food to give to Jestream to eat for at least a couple of days since he would be unable to hunt for himself. The family ate together that night talking about many things, but not about what awaited them all starting at sunrise. The sibs were the first to sleep. Jetstream watched as each one drifted peacefully. "How little the task weighs on you all." he whispered. He sat at his desk with his notebook open to the last blank pages. He wanted to write one more thing in the book if this would be the last time he would, but he was stuck. This book had so much information about the odd dragons he has meet these past years and wasn't really used for much else. But then, something dawned on him. With dip of a quill into ink, Jetstream wrote something. The next day would come, and as he watched the sibs fly off in the early sky with makeshift bags of essentials around them, he thought back on his last note hoping it was good enough.
Author's Notes: I have written down "Jetstream's Last Notes" somewhere in the document, but was debating if I should put it in the story now or wait until much later. I'll make a poll for Amino, but also leave a comment. Either way is fine with me, but I want to be able for you guys to interact as well(considering I don't get much feedback as it is). Thank you for reading this far and I hope your are looking for more from this story and others.