"It's been years dad, I know you're out there and will come home. My brothers are still doing well. Ryuu has been getting a steady glow of income for us with his business. Also, his daughter Turquoise is getting so strong, though she is still teeny. Tatsuya is still so strange. He's very talented with weapons, he's training with Ryuu's long time friend to be even better but he's definitely the laziest out of the 3 of us. He's growing up to be a normal dragon. I'm still doing well. I miss you, I've been looking for anyway to locate you. I'll keep finding a way, you're too strong to be dead, so I'll find out who took you and rip their head off myself. Happy birthday"
Amatesa then stands up and walks out of the room with the shrine to her father. She's then greeted by her brothers, who have already said their words.
"You took very long, you alright?" Ryuu
"Yes, I'm fine. I just really miss him. He vanished so quickly, I just wish I had a chance to reach him."
"We should head back home, we have some fine food for us. An elephant finally donated some meat, and Ryuu was able to purchase it quickly." Tatsuya
"The owner still owed me a favor for helping him out with some trouble makers, so he called me as soon as it came in. He went and got it prepared for us to cook, and our kin came over to eat dinner with us." Ryuu
"Elephant sounds AMAZING!" Amatesa's eyes lit up. Her previous dreary expression had been flipped with a gleam in her eyes. She loves animal meat.
They arrive back to their home. They have a cave in the forest connected a mountain, Ryuu made to also create his business. It's shrouded by a magical fog covering the whole forest so no one can accidentally find them, or intentionally find them if they aren't welcomed.
"Hey Rae and Chel! The food smells great. I'm starving" Amatesa
"The food is almost done. I prepared it and Rae is setting everything else up. Also Darius helped us. He was very kind, so we were shocked to find out he is a Demi-god. Usually they are more arrogant but we thought he was special human you had around." Chel
"I was raised by humans for most of my life, so I just picked up on how they spoke. The people where I'm from considered my mom to be extremely nice though. They say I'm just like her too." Darius blushed as the girls were praising him.
"You have pretty golden eyes too." Rae said as she approached him to look deeper.
"My dad gave me these eyes. Along with my strength, so I'm the best of both worlds, even though I don't know my dad. According to mom, he gets around." Darius said plainly.
"Gotcha, cool eyes and all, when can I start eating? I haven't had genuine meat in weeks. I could eat the whole elephant. I just might if we take too long." Amatesa rushed to a seat in front of portions already cut out. Her eyes lasered on the food.
"You can start eating, we know how you get. We already accounted for you." William said while walking from the next room over. "We acquired enough food for everyone and factored in your eating."
Amatesa starts eating and another person enters the room.
"Oh Crimson, you came too. I thought you didn't like us 'half-breeds'?" Tatsuya said mockingly.
"You're only half bad." Crimson remarked
"Welcome Crimson, you can join us of course." Ryuu said with open arms. "Family is family in our eyes."
After dinner everyone relocated back in the center room.
"Turquoise you haven't gotten so beautiful. Your dad must be fighting all of the boys off. Your eyes always are always so bright. An amazing sapphire and emerald color." Rae said
"Thank you! And dad basically chased off all the boys already. So they don't even approach me. Though I'm not really interested right now. I'm trying to be as strong as Tesa, so I can kick everyone's butt."
Amatesa gives her a thumbs up and Turquoise gives one back. Ryuu sighs as his teenager is turning out more like his sister.
"It's been how many years since your father disappeared right? I just recently joined you all, but I actually didn't know that. What happened?" Darius asked.
"Well, when we were teenagers, we were being raised by our dad alone. He raised us on his own for most of our lives. He trained us on how to defend ourselves, how to manage money, read and write, he was great. He could be a little... aggressive at times but after being a father it started to click to me and I could understand him, even if I don't agree with it all." Ryuu started to explain but then Amatesa cut him off.
"Dad was super nice. He was always kind and easy to talk to. He was super strong, like nobody could even touch him when he wasn't even trying. And when he transformed into a dragon, he was this big Sapphire covered dragon. Nobody else had even known they existed cause he was the only one until we came along. So he was close with the ruby dragons, like our kin who are here now. We all picked up on qualities he had, I am physically strong like he was, Ryuu had magic knowledge and strength like him, and Tatsuya... well he's unique but he's still strong." She started giggling. "But one day he just disappeared. No big explosion, nothing. He just wasn't here." Amatesa got sad and stopped talking.
"When you're as powerful as he was, you can sometimes attract unwanted attention. So, we theorized that someone found a way to seal him, because he wouldn't go down without a fight. We went looking in all his normal spots and is favorite sleeping spot and nothing. He just vanished as if he was plucked out of existence. Amatesa was hurt the most. She was dad's favorite though he would never say it."
"Of course I was his favorite, I'm me."
"But thats the short side of it all. I basically took over his spot and we made it work. We never given up looking, but he also taught us to not get caught up in the past either and sometimes you just have to move on." Ryuu
"That's terrible I'm sorry to hear. I can completely understand how you would feel. I'd be devastated if my mom disappeared out of nowhere. So if I can help any I certainly will." Darius
"We appreciate that."
"I'm going to go get some fresh air. The moon and stars should be bright tonight. I'll just head to the beach." Amatesa said as she stood up. Just then a tiny hand grabbed her hand. It was Lea, the half-elf. "You can come too, you're always allowed to come with me." Amatesa picked her up and carried her like a toddler, as she's still the size of one.
"Don't have her out for too long." Ryuu said.
"YeS sIr" Amatesa teased as she left the cave.
"Here we are at the beach. Such a beautiful night. The moon is bright and there's so many stars you can't count them. Did you want to walk or have me carry you? Lea grabbed on her harder. "OK you big baby."
Amatesa walked ankle deep into the water. The cold doesn't bother her in the slightest. She starts humming and the water species nearby all started listening. The sentient water creatures all were listening to Amatesa walk along. It was just Amatesa voice in the night until.
"Hey! Woman!" A voice raged from behind Amatesa. She turns around to see who it is. "You're the woman from Poko's shop? The one who beat up my brother? You messed with the wrong guy."
Amatesa turns and just smiles. "Oh someone's jealous they didn't get to feel my hands across their face? You caught me in a giving mood, I'll be happy to give you that satisfaction."
"Arrogant trash, I'll teach you for messing with my brother!"
"You need to jog my memory, which guy again?"
The lizardman came running at Amatesa in rage. As she focuses for the fight, her skin starts to shift. It changes to a sapphire color and the soft skin gradually changes to scales. Scales tougher than most metals in the known world. Lea still sits peacefully in her arms. The lizardman throws a punch at Amatesa's head, but instantly broke his bones as her scales were too tough for him. He tried Lea with his tail by spinning, but Amatesa simply blocked it with her other arm and the lizardman started kneeling over rubbing his tail in pain.
"That's it? You should have came better prepared to face a sapphire dragon. Also tell your brother he better not skip on the money he owes family, or it'll be worse next time." She lifts him up with her free arm by his shirt and tosses him back where he came from. "Can't believe he was so weak. I got excited for nothing."
Lea then stares into Amatesa's eyes and Amatesa responds "OK, OK, I won't cause no more trouble. Don't give me that look, he charged us. Don't tell my brother please, I don't feel like hearing him yell. We will head home."
She then walks back to the forest shrouded in mist. Ready to start move forward another year.