Once again we sat poised to start the race, although I could feel the vacuum created by the open spot on our left where Mel and Lucky should have been. The flag began its slow accent of the starting pole, and a hush fell over the stands as everypony held their breath. Not that anypony could blame them. Last time the racers had been ambushed by Blood Claw, and I could see several riders with fresh bandages wrapped around their barrels or legs. No one wanted to relive the terror of that event, and as the starting flag reached its zenith, it was like the dragons were shot out of a cannon. This time Winx and Nilak were nearly forced off the track as all of the dragons tried to get in the air as fast as they possibly could, meaning that we had no choice but to hold back until we had more room to maneuver.

The ramp shook as fifteen dragons pounded up its length, and I wondered if it would actually hold under the force it was being subjected to. Luckily, it held without incident, and the thunder of pounding dragon paws was replaced by the whoosh of thirty wings as they fought to keep their bodies airborne.

I bent over Nilak’s saddle as he poured on the speed, speeding past the other racers while Ivy and Winx slipped between them like a specter. Before long we were far enough ahead of the others that our victory was guaranteed, so I had Nilak pull back on his speed so that he wouldn’t push himself too far.

“Let’s call it a day guys,” I yelled over the wind, “We’ve still got a long way to go before the Draconic Heaven, and we need every victory between now and then.”

You do understand that the only racers who can even touch us are Black Beauty and Thunder right? Nilak asked as we came in for a landing on the home stretch, why would we need to go all out for anyone else?

I shrugged, “Just making sure you understood the situation. We need to get to the Draconic Heaven no matter what. I don’t want you or anyone else to be put out of the running because of a pulled wing or something.”

Winx smirked at me as we crossed the finish line, the announcer calling out our names over the loudspeakers, give us some credit Silver. We’re not so dumb that we can’t come to that conclusion on our own.

Ivy laughed, “Well, maybe not Nilak or Mel, but I’m not so sure about you.”

I shook my head as they began bickering, glad that things had begun moving back towards the norm. I had been slightly worried that Lucky’s condition might have affected team moral, but it seemed that after my speech in the hospital, everyone was pushing twice as hard to reach our ultimate goal.

Three days later, Lucky and Mel were moved back to Firebrand so they could get the care they needed without taking up space in the hospital at Seaside. Races came and went, and we found that once Black Beauty and Thunder returned to the circuit, things seemed to go our way for once. We battled over the top spots in race after race, pushing each other to new heights with every new challenge and surprise. Mel’s wounds healed slowly, as did Lucky’s, although she still remained unconscious in her private room, despite our best efforts to wake her.

Weeks turned into months, and as we climbed the leaderboards, the vision of reaching the Draconic Heaven didn’t seem like such a far off dream anymore. Somehow, we had become the top racers in the circuit without even realizing it, and had acquired the media attention that came with it. More often than not we had to dodge reporters and adoring fans that wanted to see what the Freedom Fighters were like off the track. It got so bad at one point that Ivy and I had to wear disguises outside of the Racer Headquarters just to avoid getting mobbed.

We came crashing back into our room one evening, slamming the doors closed behind us and driving the bolt home just as the thundering hoofsteps of fans came to a halt outside. Winx and Nilak looked up from their place by the windows, their eyebrows raised in a sympathetic way.

They tracked you down again I see, Nilak mused as he placed his chin back on the windowsill, how far did you get this time before you had to make a break for home?

Ivy and I didn’t answer right away, too busy trying to get our lungs to work again. It was Ivy who finally got her breathing under control first and answered his question, “We…..got to…..the block…….just beyond the……bakery before they……spotted us.” She cast a murderous look over her shoulder, as if she could see the ponies on the other side, “I wish they’d….leave us alone so we can…..focus on the races.”

Winx giggled, good luck with that. We’re superstars now, so like it or not we’re stuck with the fans and paparazzi. She flared her frills as she pushed herself to her paws, ooh, maybe they want to rub my ears like those fillies did last time!

Ivy and I simultaneously shook our heads, “Oh no you don’t Winx,” Ivy said as she walked over to the door of her bedroom, “Last time you let ponies near you we had to almost save your behind because some dragon traffickers thought you’d be an easy catch.”

Her eyes narrowed as her frills began to quiver in anger, hey! I got myself out of that mess on my own didn’t I?

But not before you got yourself locked inside of a transport with only your wits to get yourself out of it, Nilak reminded her. Had it not been for that idiot’s lax grip on his keys, you’d be off in some hidden lab or something getting who knows what done to you. Face it Winx, you got lucky, and no amount of arguing is going to change that.

Her frills lowered as her head hung, alright. I get it. No more playing around with fans. She turned a pleading look towards Ivy as she opened the door to their room, Ivy? Can I sleep in your room tonight? I’ve been having nightmares about, well, that day.

Ivy turned to look at her partner with a sympathetic expression, “Sure thing sweetie. I can imagine seeing Mel get hurt might bring up bad memories.” She pushed the door open all the way and indicated the opening with one leg, “After you.”

The Pixie Glider nodded solemnly as she walked through the doorway, Ivy sending me a slightly worried look before closing the door behind them.

I walked over to the window next to the one Nilak occupied, “What are we going to do Nilak? We’ve nearly made it to the Draconic Heaven, but it seems like the closer we get to our goal, the more we’re reminded about who’s missing from our group.”

He nodded slowly, I can understand their pain. When Mel first went missing, I nearly lost my will to live until I came to terms with her loss. Now that she’s returned to me, I couldn’t imagine going through all that again. She’s my life now, just as I am hers, and I would do anything to protect her from harm. He huffed, his breath fogging up the glass before clearing again, unfortunately, there is nothing I can do to ease her pain concerning Lucky. Unless she wakes up, I’m afraid that Mel may never come to terms with what happened to them during that race.

I leaned against the wall and crossed my forelegs in contemplation, “You’ve been down to see her a lot lately haven’t you?”

He nodded, I make sure to visit her at least once a day, and I’ve even slept with her a couple of times when she contacted me about her nightmares. His gaze turned towards the door that Ivy and Winx had disappeared through, Winx isn’t the only one who is having trouble with fears hidden in the shadows.

We didn’t bother mentioning the third member of our party who was having troubled nights. I was still haunted by the image of my mother and the Blood Claw, although now instead of my mother acting as the star in my night terrors, it was Lucky. I shivered at the image that materialized in my mind, and I shook my head to clear it before turning to look at Nilak. My heart truly went out to my feathered friend. I hadn’t known him for all that long, and yet it seemed like I had known him all my life the way I could read his emotions and expressions. We were connected, and not just by the bond we all shared as Freedom Fighters. He was my friend, and I was his. We understood one another because of the hardships we’d endured together and the victories we had shared. We were linked on a far deeper level then by some magic spell. Our hearts beat as one, and it was through that link that I could feel his pain regarding Mel and Lucky. He liked to put on a strong front for the rest of us, saying that he could handle it on his own, but the reality of it was that he was scared. He was terrified of the thought of losing Mel, or any of us for that matter. We had all become integral parts of his life, and for one of us to be injured and another mentally shattered, it must have been tearing him apart from the inside out.

I stepped up to him and knelt down next to his head, “I understand buddy. We’re all in this together, and I know that somehow, we will find a way to wake Lucky up. She’ll be so proud of us that we’ve come so far in her name. We just need to be strong so that she can wake up to our victories, rather than our sadness.”

He sniffed thickly, his eyes shining with unshed tears, but it’s so hard to stay strong. I know that Mel’s alright, but the pain that she’s feeling for Lucky is making it nearly impossible for me to comfort her. He closed his eyes and a single tear ran down the scales of his face, I feel like I’m losing her all over again, except I have to watch as her world falls apart, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. His body began to tremble as the first sobs shook his frame, I just want it all to end Silver. I want Lucky to wake up and I want Mel to be happy once again.

He moved his head off of the sill and placed it on my shoulder, my hooves automatically moving to wrap around his neck, “Hey, it’s alright. You don’t have to be strong for us all the time. We can all carry the burden together, as a team. Isn’t that what we promised to do, protect and support one another?”

He pulled back and wiped his face with the back of one paw, you’re right Silver. Crying won’t solve anything, even if I feel like my heart is shattered. I need to be strong for Mel and Lucky, but I need to let you and the others be strong for me now and again. He sniffed one last time as his gaze locked with mine, thank you Silver, for saying what you did.

I smiled as I stood up, “You’re welcome buddy. Let me know any time if you need someone to talk to or just need a helping hoof.”

He nodded as I turned to go, I will. And thanks again.

I opened the door to my room, “No problem. We’re a team. We have to stick together if we’re going to make it through this.”

I closed the door and climbed into bed, knowing the worst was yet to come. We still hadn’t told the others about our ultimate endgame, and I was starting to wonder if we could tell them and still keep our team together. Sure we needed to win the Draconic Heaven and stop Mythic Song from taking over the world, but only Nilak, Mel and I knew the truth behind that ultimate goal. The only way to stop Lord Song was to kill him, and I wasn’t sure any of our friends were ready for that kind of news. I lay in bed for what felt like hours, thinking about the Draconic Heaven and what we would have to do in order to not only win it, but to also somehow come up with a plan to defeat Song without tipping off Ivy and the others to what we really had to do.

I groaned to myself as I rubbed my eyes, “Come on brain. There has to be something you can do to prepare everyone without having to spill the beans.”

I stayed up until the moon had risen high in the sky, and still I didn’t have an answer. Finally, I couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore and rolled away from the window, curling up and folding my hooves under my pillow. Sleep came swiftly, and I fell into a thankfully dreamless sleep that held me tight until the soft light of dawn. Like it or not, there was only one race left until the Draconic Heaven, and if we didn’t have a plan before then our vision was going to fall flat before it could ever get off the ground.

Author's Notes:

Hello again all you faithful readers!!! Been crazy busy with school so I haven't been able to write all that much. Sorry for the short chapter, but I hope to get another up again later this week. In the mean time, enjoy the story and leave a comment in the towel section below about what you think of the book so far.

See you all next chapter,
Shadow Quill, Messenger of the Moon.