"Australia!" Silver cried out, seeing the vast land stretching out over the horizon.

"Finally... land," Merene laughed, more to herself then the other two dragons.

They had been flying for most of the day and, not including the interlude with D.E.D, they hadn't had any rest stops, being too afraid of being found by humans. The islands that they had crossed, mostly, were densely populated places and it was hard for the mind dragon to keep up the constant illusion hiding their group. Landing would just make it all the more difficult. In a way Silver admired the mind dragon for her persistence. It was hard to keep constantly using a power for hours on end, no matter how small.

As the beach came into view Merene lead them to a small cove that was more or less hidden from humans. The three of them landed rather roughly, and the mind dragoness collapsed onto the beach with a sigh of relief. Silver chuckled slightly. She may be powerful, but physically her strength was minimal.

"I heard that," grunted Merene as she pulled herself to a wobbly stand, "I can read thoughts you know."

"Yeah, yeah," Silver rolled her eyes and let tired wings sag be her side, "Doesn't make it less true."

The mind dragon snorted, before lying down once again with a tired yawn. It was hard to realise that she had also been awake the entire night before, watching over them. She must have been exhausted. It didn't take long for her to fall asleep.

"We should let her rest," Zepos spoke, moving up beside her, "She deserves it."

Silver nodded and yawned as well, sitting down on her haunches, "We all do."

"Then get to sleep, I'll keep watch."

"No, you go to sleep. I'm tied, but I don't think I'll be able to get to sleep easily."

"Me either."

They were both silent for a moment, the only sound calming waves lapping up against the beach and the sun setting in the distance. Again it was beautiful, and Silver couldn't help but smile.

* * *

The next day the three dragons rose early and were in the air with the sunrise at their back. Hot air flooded in from the east and they found themselves warming up rather quickly in the Australian weather. It was nice for a change. Being reptiles, dragons were not fans of cold weather and only tolerated it if they had to, besides ice dragons that is. All three of the young dragons were rather relieved to finally reach a place that was normally warm.

Silver was especially excited. There was a chance she could visit the farm that had been her home for a year after escaping from A.O.D.H's attack on Dragon Valley. It was slim, and dangerous, but it would be great to see them again. Swivelling in the air the silver dragon sped ahead of the others, eager to reach it.

The Australian countryside stretched out in all directions, besides the western sea, it was a rather dull looking place. Desert seemed to take up much of the landscape and it was only broken up by the occasional small mountain ranges or the spots of dull green forests. Groups of kangaroos bounded through the desert, fleeing from the three unknown creatures above them. Silver caught one for the other two to try, and while Merene gladly dug into the meal Zepos politely refused.

As the great yellow sun slowly started to descend into the northwest Silver finally spotted what she had been looking for. The land had changed somewhat and now instead of dirt and dead grass, forests and plains spread out in front of them. It was still summer, so everything was rather dry, but it was definitely a welcome contrast to the usual dull countryside.

'We need to find somewhere to stay for the night,' Merene spoke mentally, 'I think there may be a large cave along the coast if we can find it.'

'I've got a better idea,' Silver instantly said, 'Before I reached Sky Mountain I stayed a year at a farmhouse near here. The humans there are friendly and will gladly except us.'

Merene glanced toward the dragoness, 'You sure?'

'Yes, definitely,' Silver grinned, 'Besides, I want to see them again.'

'Okay. I can see that you trust them. Lead the way.'

With a grin Silver turned and began to fly for the general area of where the farm was. It was a large property, for this part of Australia anyway, and wouldn't be that hard to find. Once she did it was a simple matter to seek out the farmhouse, or even find Darren, that manager of the farm.

It didn't take long for her to pick up the sound of a quadbike engine revving loudly while chasing after a heard of black and white cattle. With a grin she silently flew up behind the farmer, watching as the troublesome cattle hurried away from the bike in disorderly fashion. They were quite a rabble indeed. Most of the time the cattle nearly eagerly went where they were supposed to go.

Silver flapped her wings once and sped forward, sweeping up the side of the heard and letting out a bungling roar. The white and black cattle spooked, cries of terror sweeping up from the heard as it turned to the left, and trampled through the gate with as much speed as they could manage. The farmer on the quadbike drove up behind them and closed the gate, before turning to look up at the circling dragons. Taking of his helmet he revealed a head of shaved brown hair and a warn looking face, with rough creases and hard lines. However all that changed when a smile lit up his face.

"Silver!?" he called out in disbelief to the dragoness.

She smiled, circling down and landing in front of him, "Darren! Glad to see you again!"

"Wha... what are you doing here?" said the disbelieving farmer, "I thought you wouldn't be coming back."

"Oh, I was just passing through and decided to pay you a visit, see what's been happening since I left," the dragoness nudged him slightly with her head, "I've missed this place."

Darren grinned and laid a hand on her head, "Well... I must say I'm glad to see you again. I've been worried about you. We all have."

"And I have too," Silver rumbled, before turning toward the sky where Merene and Zepos were still circling, "You can come down now!"

The two dragons joined her on the ground, both landing behind Silver and watching the human in front of them.

"These two came with me. You've met Zepos, and the mind dragon is Merene," Silver said, nodding to the dragons in turn.

"Pleased to meet you," he sent a wary glance at Zepos. Last time he met the lightning dragon Zepos had been under the control of A.O.D.H and had attacked them in an attempt to draw out Silver. She had managed to free Zepos without too much trouble, and nothing had been destroyed, but it was a close thing.

"Well, come, come. My family would be really glad to see you again," Darren placed his helmet back on his head, "Let's go."

* * *

"So... that's how I ended up here," Silver said with a grim smile.

Darren's family had met them on the front lawn of their house, which was only just big enough to fit the three dragons. They had been exceedingly happy to here that she had come back to them, and had been eager to here all of what had happened to her, so she had told them. Most of it anyway.

"I'm sorry," said Darren's wife, Jasmine, a little flustered by what had happened during Silver's time away.

"It's alright. I'll heal eventually," sighed the dragoness, trying to hold back the swirl of emotion she felt. It had been the first time she had talked about her father's death with anyone for a while, and it had helped somewhat.

"Well, we'll be glad to house you for the night, all three of you, as long as you don't eat all out cattle," said Darren in an attempt to lighten the dragons up.

"Thankyou," Zepos spoke, "We'll be happy to."

Merene nodded before getting up and yawning, "I'll be asleep in the shed. See you in the morning."

"Yeah, we should get some rest," Zepos said, looking at Silver.

She nodded, "Okay, thankyou Darren."

"Your welcome, anything for my favourite dragon and her friends," the farmer smiled, "Oh, but you don't mind if I have a talk to you Silver."

"Yeah sure," she frowned slightly.

Zepos and Merene left by air, flying over to where the farm shed was. It was still the same as it had been when Silver had left. An open door with straw heaped on it. A perfect nest for most dragons and a rather comfortable resting spot when tired. They would sleep well tonight.

"Goodnight Silver," Greg, Darren's son, said, hugging the dragoness around the neck before tiredly walking back into the house.

"Goodnight," replied the dragoness, watching him leave, before turning to Darren, "What do you want to talk about?"

The farmer sighed, running a hand through his shaven hair, "Things around here have been... hectic lately. And by hectic I don't mean work wise. Strange things have been happening. Soldiers have been travelling through nearby cities and towns looking for dragons. I assume they are either D.E.D or A.O.D.H, and there has been a strange purple dragon that has been spotted numerous times."

Silver frowned, "How long has this been going on for?"

'The past week. The last sighting of the purple dragon was yesterday around sunset. Soldiers have also knocked on my door numerous times these past few months, asking about a silver dragon. I assume that's you. Apparently there have been sightings of you around this area."

"Well, I only just got back, so I don't know what they are talking about," Silver said, "I've been, mostly, at Sky Mountain for the past four months."

"I know, but they are on the look out for dragons."

"Don't worry about us Darren. Merene is a mind dragon, and a very powerful one at that. She can create some pretty realistic illusions, and that includes making us invisible. That's why we haven't been found so far."

Darren nodded his head, still a little worried, "I know, but still be careful. They seemed to be desperate."

"I will, you can trust me," Silver grinned slightly before turning.

"Oh, and Silver," Darren said, causing her to look back toward him.

"If you manage to win this war, you are welcome to come and stay with us," he grinned, "It's fun having a dragon around."

"I'd be glad to," Silver smiled back.

She took to the air and flew toward the shed where Zepos and Merene were settling down. She quickly told them what Darren had told her, and while the drake seemed slightly worried, Merene assured them that she would be able to hold them off.

Silver curled up near Zepos on the hay and closed her eyes. She felt herself relax with a sigh. It was good to be with humans that weren't a threat to her, that enjoyed her company. Most seemed to be either afraid, or hate dragons. It made living in the world tiring. Still, even as she relaxed, she couldn't help but feel that something was just around the corner.

* * *

Retrix flew high, his silhouette against the moon. The only thing visible was the blinking red light on his head, the device that controlled him. The thing he despised. And now, he couldn't fight it as it lead him directly to follow the orders he had been given.

He knew where they were now, and he would not fail. No dragon would stop him, not metal, earth or mind. He would complete his mission no matter how hard he had to fight. That was his order. If he didn't complete it, he didn't know what would happen.

Looking down at the farmhouse and shed below he folded his wings, and dove, gathering the energy that was part of him. Nothing would stop him, not now.

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Hey guys! New chapter, sorry it took so long, and sorry that it is a little short. It's been a struggle to get things done. Anyway, vote if you enjoyed and comment what you thought. Next chapter will be out when I can get it out. See Ya!

Pennator^^