. . . 

A shriek startled the dragons and they quickly came running back only to see Bookworm's dead body and a sobbing Wild who was holding it. Even though Wild was screeching, it was pretty clear who killed him. 

Wild himself. 

Moonshard: I- what? No, this doesn't . . . it doesn't align with the universe.  

Wind: W..what the? *Her face looked theatrically horrified*

Wild: W-W-Why did I do that?! WHAT IS HAPPENING!?!

Shadow: *He had been hiding in the shadows and had seen Wild kill Bookworm with his own talons.* You . . . I THOUGHT YOU WERE FRIENDS! *He pounces on Wild, pinning him down.*

Wild: I- I really don't know why I did that! It's as if my talons moved on my own! MY MIND DIDN'T ORDER IT TO DO SO! And I couldn't stop it . . . It's as if something was controlling me.

Silver: Well, it's pretty clear who the murderer of this mystery is now! *She clenches Wild's throat.*

Frog: Wait, no. Listen to him . . . what he's saying seems very important.

Moonshard: Yes, the future is decided by actions. Wild and Bookworm have a strong thread. It cannot be cut unless there is something abnormal. 

Silver: To this day, I still don't understand both of you. Frog with your overwhelming sappiness and Moonshard with your weird choice of words. 

Raindrop: No . . . listen . . . they have been strangely quiet.

Stardust: *exchanges glance* You mean Mystery-Dragon?

Raindrop: *scoffs* Who else could I have meant?!

Silver: And what does it have to do with me killing this murderer?

Raindrop: GAH, just, don't you think it's weird . . . ?

Shadow: What is?

Stardust: I think I get what you mean . . . Wild would never and I mean never kill Bookworm from what I've read from them. *She flashes a smug expression* I have been studying dragons 24/7 almost my whole life, y'know . . . 

Raindrop: *Rolls eyes* Yeah, yeah, I know.

Shadow: I mean, what you're saying isn't incorrect, but I saw him kill Bookworm myself! He stabbed Bookworm with his claws!

Wild: *he looked nauseous* I- I . . . *His eyes widened and grabbed Shadow tightly* It's coming. It's coming!

Silver: *Shakes Wild* WHAT'S COMING?!

Wild: *He answered that by gripping Silver's neck. His eyes were pearl-white.* Haha, how funny. Even though you saw me kill that know-it-all, you still hadn't gotten rid of that hybr- me . . . ?

*While the others stared in shock, Shadow quickly jabbed his claws into Wild's chest. Not too deep, but deep enough for him to jump back, wincing.*

Shadow: I told you so! HE IS A MURDERER. 

Wild: *His eyes were back to his brown, chocolatey eyes. He coughed and gagged* S-s-stop... 

Moonshard: *Her talons gently touched Shadow's arm.* Let him go . . . it seems important.

Shadow: What?! He tried to kill Silver!

Frog: I- I don't think that is Wild. 

Moonshard: *She nods* I agree. That isn't him. Wild would never say such things about Bookworm...

Wild: I- I- I need to speak! Quick, before it comes back again.

Shadow: *He sighs* If you guys end up dead, it's your fault. *Drops Wild harshly*

Wild: *In a jagged voice* M-M-Mystery-Dragon! He's controlling me. At least, I think he is. I can feel an aura controlling my brain. A-and something made me this way. Maybe not something . . .  perhaps someone. . . 

Wild: Three moons, he's coming back, he's coming back! *In a rush* agh, OK, Ok, uh, Bookworm found out about it. At least he has theories about being the smart guy he is. And Mystery wanted me to kill him before he told you guys who he suspects the true murderer is. He told me before I killed him though it's---

*Suddenly, Wild's eyes turned white again and he suddenly lunged at unsuspecting Moonshard with his grip tight on her neck.*

Wild: That dragon is so very idiotic. It was fun playing with him. I can still feel his lingering guilt and raging emotions . . . quite drastic really. It was one dragon. Not as if Know-It-All was a very pleasant dragon. *It scoffed* exposing my secrets like that. Goddamit, both of them should die. 

Frog: Moonshard! *He rushes over and tries to push Wild off but his talons stayed firmly on the ground* 

Shadow: *He leans toward the rest of the group* We need to kill him . . . if Wild is right about it, we need to kill him and Mystery will have one less dragon to control. He's still among us but we need to. 

Wild: Oh, sweet little Shadow, you just said it. I'm one of you guys. You just explained your whole plan to me. *He cackles* Even if you kill little Wild here, I'm still here. I'll still find more of you guys to infect. If anything, shouldn't you find out who I am amongst you guys first? 

???: *His voice broke off from Wild's, leaving the Rain-Mud hybrid collapsed on the floor* You're making this too boring. Here's a hint about defeating me. I only have one more of you to control if you kill Wild here. If you defeat her then I would be gone! Perished! Heh, sounds fun, no? 

Stardust: *through gritted teeth* He's trying to tease us . . . 

Raindrop: We know, Stardust. 

Frog: *Murmurs quietly* What if he's right? What if we need to kill Wild? It's one dragon left to corrupt. . . Shouldn't we do it? Should we or should we not?

Moonshard: *She brushed her wings gently with Frog's* We have to make a decision for the sake of the universe. You know that don't you, Frog? 

*He didn't respond but stared at Wild miserably.*

Shadow: C'mon, if we don't kill him, even if we find out the second dragon he corrupted, he'd still use Wild to try and kill us. What if he never lets Wild's mind free? Wouldn't he be stuck in ropes with no freedom forever? He would stay inside his brain completely miserable while filled with guilt about Bookworm. 

Frog: . . . You're right. They would be happier together in the heavens. Just . . . I don't want to watch it.

Silver: *She suddenly lunges at Wild and with one swift move, snaps his neck painlessly.* 

*The others looked shocked for a moment. Silver shrugged.*

Silver: What? Did you forget? If we keep on brainstorming when we kill it, then Mystery will know. For all I know, I can't trust any of you.

Moonshard: But we do know one thing. It's a she. Mystery had stated that the dragon who he corrupted next was female and we also know that it is one where it has the capability of infecting another dragon with some kind of . . . let's call it mind-control.

Raindrop: So we can sort out the females who have the ability to infect others? Not sure how that is going to work, but, we'll see . . . 

(Do yall have a guess on who it is?)

(also- I NEVER PLANNED ON KILL THREE OF YOUR DRAGONS @warriorcats2011 TvT. I promise Shadow is definitely going to stay for a long time.)

(And I loved Bookworm and Wild's friendship and bond too. . . well, at least they're together now . . .)