The Death Sea

*(Only Leaders, with permission from Floke, or Trisha(Floke's personal favorite friend) are able to access the Death Sea. The Death Sea may be used as a Quest location occasionally.)*


The colors cleared and I stood on a ridge standing above crashing, violent, dark waves. Floke raised his beside me, smiling. I waited for the hatchlings. Ackos raised his head and smiled, laughing. "Helloooo, Trissssshaaaa. It issss delightful toooo see yoooou." "Hello Ackos." I said as Ackos leaded forward with his huge head. His breath smelled horrible as he looked over at Floke, who was tiny compared to him. He smiled and yelled, "Little brooooother Floke!" "Yyesss, hheelllloooo, Ackos."

Then Ackos leaned towards me again. "Why, it isssss aaaa sssshaaaame thaaat I caaaannooot eaaaat yooou." I snorted and a wave of fear swept through my body for only a second, but Ackos felt it. He smiled much too large. Floke snarled. "Iitt iiss oonnllllyy oonnee ddrraaggooon, Ackos. Rreessttrraaiin yyoouurrsseellff." Ackos did, submerging below the waves for a second, before his ugly head and shimmering green scales appeared again. He looked around, and asked, "Where aaare the oootherssss?" "They should be here." I growled, unsure of my self.

Skylar and Antonis appeared an instant later and were dumb struck to see all three of the dragons, the newest one being terrible looking and huge. It's green scales and death-like breath were almost too much for the little hatchlings to bear but they remembered the warning not to show fear. It took every bit of strength they had to smile blandly at Ackos. Antonis, the bigger of the two actually had the nerve to issue a greeting, "hello, dear Ackos, it's a pleasure to meet you. This is my sister Skylar." Skylar just smiled politely at the terrible creature.

"Wooonderful! Yooou broought me candy!" I snarled angrily, and so did Floke. "Ackos, NNOOO!" Hissed Floke. "Ackos, we brought these hatchlings along to see if you know them and their parents." I glared at Ackos with one eye on his two gleaming yellow eyes. But Ackos appeared to pay no attention as Floke roared, "NNNOOOO Ackos! NNNOOO!" Ackos angrily arched his neck back and was about to strike at the hatchlings when Floke barred his way. Ackos growled. "Fine!" I jumped up and flew in front of Floke as Ackos launched his head. His jaws clamped shut on most of my right wing, flank, and tail. Floke bit Ackos on the lower jaw so that he would loosen his grip, which he did. Floke hissed again as I glided clumsily over to the rock ridge. "Jjuusstt hheelllpp uussss, Ackos. Plleeaassseeee, nnooo vviiooollleennnccee."Ackos seemed to understand, but he probably wasn't going to keep from striking again. It was the hatchlings I was afraid for now. I was injured so I couldn't help them as much.

We watched in horror as the brave Trisha came to our defense and Floke bit the terrible dragon's jaw. Antonis and I were having a hard time showing no fear as Ackos tried to attack us we both closed our eyes tight. Luckily Ackos did not see our betrayal of fear as he was fighting off his brother. "How could it be that two brothers would fight each other?" I trembled. Antonis could not imagine either the awful evil he saw in Ackos' eyes towards Floke. "It's unimaginable", he agreed.
We both moved closer together and I could feel the strength the two of us possessed, united in our desire to withstand this if it meant bringing our entire family together again. We stared intently at Ackos, as brave as we could.

"Hmmmm." Ackos leaned forward to smell the hatchlings. He must have smelled something, but his eyes darkened to an evil, blackish-gold. His needle teeth were bared. I knew that look, that readiness and hunger look anywhere. Ackos was not going to keep that no violence promise much longer. "I knooow thesssse haaaatcccchlingssss, they smell likkkkke their paaaarentsss." A wave of shock shook my body. I didn't know if the hatchlings had figured it out, since this was their first time meeting Ackos, but I had figured this mystery out. Floke snarled at his brother again. Ackos stared at me, and, while keeping his jaws dangerously close to the hatchlings spoke. "It issss noooot entirely whaaaat yoooou thinkkkk, Trishaaaa." Ackos's eyes had gone back to their light yellow, but know it was back to black-gold. I walked forward. I knew what had happened. Fear. Ackos arched his neck back, and I forced myself to be afraid, of nothing really. Ackos turned around. Floke snarled. "Nooooo. NOOOOOOO." Floke hissed long and low as he swam in front of me. But it was too late to control Ackos. He had sensed a tiny bit of fear from the hatchlings, and not even Floke could stop him. Floke whispered in my ear as waves crashed against the ridge. "Sssuubbbddduueee hhiiimm bbeeffoorreee hheee ggeeetttsss tthee hhatcchlingggssss." I nodded, but Ackos kept his eyes locked with Antonis's and Skylar's.

Acting as brave as possibly I thought quickly. Maybe I could offer a treasure to this awful dragon, intent on killing us. "Ackos." I said "My brother and I come from a lair far away, the Dark Lair. There are parents left us things, glitter stones and other treasures. There is one jewel in particular you may be interested in." Ackos looked interested indeed. I continued, "It is a bright red jewel, as big as three of me. Perhaps, if you help us, we will give it to you as a reward." Antonis looked pained, not out of fear but because this was his favorite jewel and he believed it had very special magical properties but as yet they remained looked inside the red glowing object.
Ackos looked very interested and I saw a hint of a smile as he continued to ponder the possibilities.

"Hmmm. Jewel yooooou ssssaaay? Caaan I see it?" Ackos asked with great interest. "Maaybe thaaaan I wooouldn't eaaat yoooou, aand yooou haaave noooo ideaaaa hoooow mucccch my prey wooould paaay tooo heaaaar me sssssaaaay thaaaat. Doooo yooou waaant toooo kkknoooow hooooow yoooour paaarentsss died?" Ackos came close to me, whispered the story in my ear in just a few minutes, and than back up near Floke. I was nervous, I must admit.

Antonis moved forward, "If what you say is true, which we may not believe, if you wish you can tell us", he said. Skylar moved forward as well and spoke, "As for the jewel, it is hidden in a secret place. You didn't think we would bring it with us so that you can take it and then kill us did you?", she said defiantly. For such small hatchlings, they were showing the bravery of a thousand Dragons of the Dark Lair.

I looked at Skylar and Antonis anxiously; I was worried. Don't test Ackos or be snippy with him! I thought in my head. Ackos snarled at the hatchlings. I spoke up, "Ackos, they're hatchlings. Calm yourself." For a second he seemed to take nicer to me than Floke. He just shook his head as sea water flew everywhere. The waves suddenly grew more violent and sea spray splashed in my face, filling my mouth with a salty taste. Ackos, I realized, had just been ignoring me and staring at the hatchlings, intently; angrily. "Doooo nooot tesssst me haaatccchlingsss. I've told Trisssshaaa the stooory. Dooo nooot aaaanger me, Ssskylaaar aaand Aaantonissss." Ackos nodded at me, but the waves were still violent. "OK, Skylar, Antonis, your parents, at least one is dead. Your father is dead, but your mother is probably not dead as far as Ackos knows. She is probably off somewhere in the Water Lair, wandering about, looking for you. Ackos says he saw her, but to know the location he needs something. A treasure." Ackos nodded, smiling as he slithered his neck over near me, breathing his horrible breath down my neck.

Antonis and I thought for a moment, "what should we do Antonis?", I asked. "We can give the treasure to Ackos, but then he might kill us and never help us find our mother?" Antonis was mad, he was having a hard time believing that his father was gone and he didn't want to accept this. Then he said, "The only way that we can ensure that we stay safe is to have them help us find our mother (and maybe father too)" he added, "and then bring them to our lair to give Ackos the treasure since that is where it is hidden". "OK" I said and then explained this to the dragons.

"Hmmm." Ackos again whispered another thing in my ear, and raised his head eagerly. "OK, Ackos said he saw her on the east coast of the Death Sea. He said she looked tired and such, and then he had to leave." "Nooow, haaaatcccchlingssss, get the treaaaasssssure or whaaatever yoooou haaaave, aaaand give it!" Ackos hissed. Floke threatened to wrap himself around Ackos's snout if he got too threatening, but Ackos just replied that he wasn't going to threaten them, he was just going to give them two chances. Floke said he would wrap his coiling body around Ackos so tight that he could not breathe if he tried to eat the hatchlings. Ackos did not reply to that. I paced about on the small ridge that wasn't coved in sea water, walking over to the hatchlings. I whispered to the hatchlings in their ears, "I can take you back to get the jewel. If you don't want to be Ackos's next meal, I suggest you get that jewel by any means." I stood next to the hatchlings, waiting for their answer. I repeated in the same whispering tone so Ackos would not overhear, "Like I said, I could use magic to get you to the Dark Lair and back here to the Death Sea, but I would have to come."

We stood close and listened to Trisha, our trusted friend. We agreed that was probably the best course and agreed to go by magic to the lair. What happened next we did not know, we were still afraid that we would be Ackos' next meal.

Ackos finally snapped. He snarled and lunged forward, jaws open. Floke was too far away to stop him so I chanted the transportation spell under my breath, touching both Skylar and Antonis as we were whisked off to the Dark Lair in a shower of lights. As we vanished, and bright colors blurred my vision, I saw Ackos's jaws close on where we used to be, but were we no longer were. I smiled and laughed.

I reappeared as I saw Ackos with teeth in full snarl. "Here Ackos." I handed him the huge red jewel. Ackos grabbed it between his teeth. "I will looook fooor their paaarentsss, ooor moother. Aaaactuaaaally, jusst the mooother." "What?" I asked. "Doooo NOOOOT remind me oooof thaaaat daay!" I nodded. "My apologies." "Know, if you excuse me-" The spell started and colors fluttered about, whisking me away.