Try as I might not to fall asleep, my eyes ended up closing of their own volition, and when I woke up it became clear that Black Beauty had tried to escape. Nilak had her pinned on her back with one of his front paws while Mel and Winx kept Whiteout from going ballistic. I checked the couch and was relieved to see Thunder still passed out on the cushions. At least that minimized our problems to one at the moment. I looked at the chair next to me where Lucky had been, but it was empty. I stood up slowly to stretch out my muscles, trying to ignore Black Beauty’s protests at being held against her will. At that moment Lucky walked back into the main room from the bedroom, a very sleepy-eyed Ivy following with a hoof covering a huge yawn.

They walked up to me and Lucky gestured to our captive, “Seems she tried to make a run for it while we were taking a cat nap. Nilak heard her trying to get away and took care of the problem for the time being. He woke up Mel and Winx soon after because Whiteout kept trying to get him off of Black Beauty and he needed to keep her calm.” She clapped Ivy on the shoulder, “He got me up a few minutes ago in order to go and get miss sleeping beauty over here because their mental summons didn’t reach her in her sleep.”

“Oh don’t get all fluffed up.” Ivy said as she stretched her neck and hind legs, “I had a long day and I needed the sleep. Speaking of which, why didn’t you wake Silver up? I’m sure he was out like a light when you came to get me.”

“He was, but Nilak assured me he could get him up so he sent me after you instead.” She glanced at me, “Apparently it worked.”

I rolled my eyes and walked around the couch to stand over Black Beauty, “Well, what are we going to do with her?”

“Let me go you crazy whacks!” She tried to struggle but Nilak just pressed slightly harder and all she did was flail her legs a bit. “Let me out of this nuthouse before I scream!”

Nilak glanced at me, she already did plenty of screaming and nopony has heard us yet. I figure the rooms are soundproofed so riders don’t bother one another during the night.

I nodded to him in agreement, “Sounds perfectly reasonable.”

Black Beauty looked at me with wide eyes, “What sounds perfectly reasonable? Are you talking to yourself again?”

I rolled me eyes as Lucky bent down next to Black Beauty with a smug grin, “You know who he was talking to and can’t admit it to yourself that a dragon can talk. Believe me, compared to some of the other things we can do, talking dragons is the least of your worries.”

Her magenta eyes went wide and she tried to struggle some more, Mel and Winx having to hold Whiteout back as the worried female tried to get to her master. “Either you let me go or I’ll do something we’ll both regret.”

“Oh, and what would that be?” I asked as I walked up next to Lucky.

The trapped rider pulled a small dagger out from under her clothes and placed it against one of Nilak’s toes, “I’ll cut my way free.”

Nilak snorted and leaned over, his nose just inches from the frightened mare’s, you do that and you’ll lose your hoof for it. Now, put the dagger down or I’ll push on your ribs until they crack.

Black Beauty shook her head from side to side, “Dragons can’t talk. I’m just imagining it.” She pulled her leg back and swung at Nilak’s foot, but only got about half way before he caught her limb with his other paw. He squeezed her leg and she cried out in pain, dropping the dagger with a clatter as Nilak flicked it out of reach with his tail.

Nilak released her leg and growled in her face, next time I’ll break your leg. Now stop trying to play dumb and listen to us. We don’t want to hurt you or Whiteout. We just want to talk to you.

“He’s right,” Lucky said, “we just want you to listen to us and then you can decide if you believe us or not.”

Black Beauty looked at Lucky with suspicion in her eyes, “And what guarantee do I have that you won’t hurt us if we try and run? For all I know if I try and run you’ll kill me at the edge of the door.”

Ivy rolled her eyes, “Do we look like the Blood Claw to you? We just want to share what we know, and if you choose to join up with us we have no quarrel with you. Even if you did start running around telling everyone that our dragons can talk and we spoke in your mind, who would believe you?” She chuckled to herself at the mental image, “You’d be the laughingstock of the entire Circuit and everypony would think you’d gone off the deep end from too many close calls on the track. I’ve seen some of the things you’ve gone through in races, and even one of them would be enough to drive most ponies a little bit batty.” She crossed her forelegs and grinned at the captive mare, “When you think about it, we don’t even have to do anything to you if you run, your story will be your own undoing.”

Black Beauty looked from Ivy to Lucky and then to me, her eyes now showing a slight glint of resignation, “Alright, but can you at least get this overgrown newt off of me so I can actually listen without feeling like a pancake?”

No trouble at all, Nilak said as he moved back a few steps, taking his paw off of the mare’s upper body.

She stood up slowly and then glanced at Whiteout, as if contemplating running away anyway, when Thunder decided to wake up from his little nap.

“Hey, what’s going on?” He sat up holding his head and looked around to room, his eyes blinking rapidly as he yawned widely, “Hay that was one hell of a dream,” he paused as he spotted us by the front door, “or maybe not.” He kicked over the back of the couch and walked up to us, his eyes traveling from one pony to the next and finally ending on Shield Fang. For a split second I thought he was going to make a run for it as well, but he just reached up and rubbed the big dragon on the side of the muzzle, “Well, I guess if it wasn’t a dream I might as well stick around to hear the ending.”

He looked at Black Beauty as she sputtered in disbelief, “Oh don’t tell me you aren’t at least a tiny bit curious about dragons that can talk into a pony’s head? I know you well enough that your scared act is nothing more than that, an act.” He held one hoof by his ear as she muttered under her breath, “Sorry, I couldn’t catch that. Could you speak up a bit?”

“I said you’re too smug for your own good at times.” She bit back, “Alright, I’ll listen to what you have to say, but at the first sign of trouble I’ll getting out of this room, through a door or otherwise it doesn’t matter.”

Lucky and Ivy smacked a high hoof while Mel and Winx let Whiteout rejoin her master. Thunder walked over to the couch and sat at one end with his back legs along the cushion and his forelegs crossed behind his head, “Well, you might as well get started.”

We walked over and took various seats facing the two racers as they sat on the couch. Black Beauty remained on edge and sat with her rear on the very edge of the couch so moving would be quick if she needed to. Lucky rolled her eyes at her behavior, “You’re going to give yourself a backache if you sit like that. Relax for two seconds and let us tell our story. We’re not going to hurt you. How hard is that to understand?”

Thunder laughed and leaned forward to pull Black Beauty backwards so her torso rested against the back of the couch. “Quit acting like a cornered mouse and listen. I won’t be able to pay attention with you wound up like a spring the whole time.”

She shot a dagger glare at him but didn’t comment, crossing her legs and staring at me, “Well, are you going to tell us or not?”

Nilak and the other dragons moved behind us as Whiteout and Shield Fang rested their heads on the back of the couch. I cleared my throat, “Well, the simple truth is that our dragons can speak because they aren’t under the control of the collars.” At this Black Beauty and Thunder had the exact same reaction, they jumped behind the couch and hid. “Oh would you come out already? Do you think any of us would be alive if our dragons were bloodthirsty killers bent on slaying ponykind? Come out from behind there and let me finish.”

They peaked over the couch as one and shared a look, finding courage in each other’s gaze. Thunder sat back in his spot, though he adopted Black Beauty’s pose of sitting on the edge of the couch as she did the same.

I rolled my eyes upward, “What a pain.” I cleared my throat again, “Now then, where was I? Oh yes. You see, dragons were not the starters of the war that ravaged our planet for thousands of years. Ponies began the fighting and he kept it going, though by the end of the war it mattered little who had started it and who hadn’t. Nilak,” I waved a hoof over my shoulder at him, “was sent to my home city to find a way to free the dragons from Mythic Song’s collars. You see, he plans on using the magic within the collars to take over all of the dragons and conquer the world. Melinda was sent for the same reason,” I gestured to her, “but was captured before she could get anywhere and ended up being my friend Lucky’s partner. It was only when I cut the power to her collar that she revealed her true self to us and we began this whole venture.”

“What about her?” Thunder asked, indicating Ivy with one hoof, “How does she factor in?”

“I was brought into the group much as you could be,” she explained, “though I didn’t know why I could speak to dragons until Silver cut the power to Winx’s collar.” She reached back and rubbed the dragon between her eyes, “I never knew that Winx could be so much more than just a pet. Since we’ve been together without the collar in the way, we’ve bonded closer than ever before.”

“Could the same happen to Whiteout and Shield Fang if you cut the power to theirs?” Black Beauty asked, leaning forward with interest.

I glanced at Lucky and Ivy, “We know it will break the suppressing power the collar has over them, but if they were collared from birth there might not be much of a mind in there to listen to.” I indicated Winx with my hoof, “Winx was like a young child for the first several hours before her brain caught up with her body. In many ways she’s still very immature mentally, even if her body is close to adulthood.”

Hey! She yelled as she glared at me, I resemble that remark!

Nilak leaned over, that’s I resent that remark, Winx.

She looked at him and blushed in realization at what she had just said, oh, sorry, my bad.

I smiled as I looked back at the two racers, “See what I mean?”

Thunder narrowed his eyes, “Why is it I can barely hear their voices in my head? It’s like I’m listening to them on opposite ends of a tunnel.”

I shrugged, “No idea.” I look back at Nilak, “Any ideas?”

He narrowed his own eyes in thought, it could be because they don’t have a strong bond with us. If they could talk to Whiteout and Shield Fang I think it would be much easier for them to understand.

I looked back at the racers, “Did you get that?”

They nodded, “I think I heard right,” Black Beauty said, “if we talk with our own dragons it would be easier to understand them?”

I nodded, “That about sums it up.” I glanced between the two, “But are you sure you want us to do that? Once the magic in the collars is released their will be no turning back.”

Black Beauty looked at Thunder as he caught her gaze. They seemed to come to an agreement and nodded to us.

“Alright,” I said, clapping my hooves, “if that’s what you want we’ll get started right away.” I hopped out of my chair and walked over to my tool bag, picking out my wire cutters as I turned back to the uncertain-looking racers, “If you don’t want me to do this then I’ll stop and we can forget the whole thing.”

They shook their heads, “I’m ready for it,” Thunder said with confidence, “do it.”

“Alright.” I walked up to the dragons and popped the panel over the main wires. The same mess of metal and plastic presented itself to be cut and one by one I sawed through them on Whiteout. She looked down at me with interest as I made my way through the ever-stubborn white wire, and when I cut through she shook her head like a bee was buzzing around it.

She stepped back from the couch and swatted at her face with one paw, her eyes scrunched up and her teeth bared. Black Beauty made a move to comfort her dragon but I stopped her with a raised leg, “Leave her for now, she needs to work this out on her own.”

Black Beauty sent me a cold look but didn’t try and force her way past me. Whiteout shook her head violently one more time before slowly raising it to stare at all of us, where am I?

Black Beauty couldn’t take it anymore and ran to her dragon, wrapping her legs around the base of her neck as she beamed, “Oh Whiteout, can you ever forgive me?”

She looked up at the dragon, who seemed to be quite puzzled at the statement, forgive you for what? Taking care of me and loving me like family? You are my surrogate mother, and I consider you family even though we aren’t the same species. She bent her head down to rest it against Black Beauty’s back, I will never resent you for what you could not have possibly known. We’re partners, and more importantly we’re needed. She looked up at us with determination in her blue eyes, I could hear and understand everything you were saying. I was just unable to express it because of the collar. If there is anything I can do for you, just name it.

I smiled and looked back at the others, “We could really use somepony like you in our group. If we had you and Thunder on our side we would stand a much better chance of winning the Draconic Heaven.”

She nodded and looked down at Black Beauty, if you are in agreement, I wish to help in their fight to free the other dragons.

Black Beauty looked up at her with tears in her eyes, “Anything for you my sweet.”

Thunder cleared his throat loudly, “If you don’t mind my interruption, Shield Fang still has a working collar that needs to be fixed.”

I laughed and walked over to the massive male, “Sure thing. Let’s get this thing the way it should be.” A minute or two later the last of the white wire was cut and Shield Fang looked at his partner with a raised eye ridge, does this mean I have to play nice with others now?

We all burst out laughing at his comment, the completely innocent tone dripping with irony and the raised eye ridge matching Thunder’s expression to a tee.

Thunder laughed along with us, “I knew there was something I liked about you from the moment I laid eyes on you all those years ago. Now I see why that was.” He walked up and presented his leg to the dragon, “Pleased to meet the real you Shield Fang, I’m Thunder Ace.”

The massive dragon smirked and shook the offered limb, nice to meet you too, though I think there are some more introductions to undertake before we’re done.

He looked at Winx and winked one eye, making the smaller dragoness blush wildly as Ivy chuckled, “Don’t tell me you find him attractive?”

Winx nodded as she hid her head behind one wing, her frills erect and twitching from nervous energy as she bashfully tried to hide her reaction to the dragon’s action, I won’t deny he’s got very handsome features, and a wonderful voice and perfect eyes and…. oh, you know what I mean. She hid her head under both wings and placed both paws on top of them to hold them in place.

We all burst out laughing again as Shield Fang walked over and tapped her on the back with one claw, making her squeak in nerves as he slowly folded her wings out of the way to reveal her madly flushed cheeks.

You know, I wouldn’t have done that if I didn’t think you were cute as well, his voice was deeper than usual and it resonated though our heads like a huge church bell as he smiled down at Winx.

She fit the flattered damsel part perfectly as she stuttered over her words, b-but how can you s-say that? We just met yesterday!

He ran the back of one claw down her cheek, making her shiver with excitement at the touch, does one need more than a day to fall in love?

Winx seemed unable to cope with the sheer emotion going through her body, her eyes rolling up in her head as she slumped to the floor in a dead faint.

Ivy rolled her own eyes and walked over to the small dragon, tapping her lightly on the head to try and wake her up, “It’s no use, she’s out like a light.”

Whiteout looked at Shield Fang with a reprimanding glare, you could have done that much slower and she might not have fainted.

I know, he said, but it was fun watching her squirm for a bit. I meant every word I said. I just wanted to see if I could pull at her heart strings for a bit of fun.

“You and Winx are going to end up like Nilak and Mel before too long,” I said with a smug grin, ignoring the protests and denial of the latter two, “just remember to go easy on her. She’s not experienced in this kind of thing and you could make her feel overwhelmed if you do too much.”

Shield Fang glanced at me sidelong with the same raised eye ridge, you don’t think I know that? Be a good colt and worry about your own partner before you get up in my face about Winx. I may agree with your mission, but that doesn’t automatically make us friends.

I nodded, “Point taken.” I glanced at Thunder and Black Beauty, “So, now that you two have seen what the truth is, are you with us? We could really use a pair of skilled riders like you on our team.”

They shared a look and then looked at their dragons. They looked back at each other and nodded, looking at us and speaking in unison, “We’re in.”

Author's Notes:

Two down, one to go. Let's keep this chapter train rolling.
See ya next chapter,
Shadow Quill, Messenger of the Moon.