Crystalla
Dreams of Tomorrow

An escape pod plummeted towards the surface of the floating continent, as Atlas, Mizu, Lotte, Ruby and Keegan held tightly onto the safety harnesses. Small thrusters brought the pod into autoland, as it hit the ground with a thud.

The door slid open as Ruby flew outside.

"It's safe!" She called back into the pod, Keegan stumbled out and looked around at their surroundings, in the far distance he watched as The Wild Rose hit the ground. "Oh no..." Ruby frowned.

"They'll have gotten out safe, don't worry, Ruby" Keegan tried to calm Ruby down as she began to cry.

"Do you think so?" Ruby asked, sadly.

"I know so" Keegan smiled. "They've all been through a lot, I doubt an airship crash will stop them" He nodded. Ruby smiled at Keegan and perched on his shoulder. They watched as Atlas helped Mizu and Lotte out of the wreckage.

"I guess we arrived then" Mizu sighed, as she looked at the lifeless trees and the dead grass beneath their feet. Atlas climbed out of the escape pod and nodded.

"It's sad to think this continent was once bursting with life" Lotte frowned. Ashfall had begun to cover the ground in a dull grey colour, lit only by the dark red sky.

"This is where Lumina once ruled, no?" Atlas asked.

"I think so" Mizu nodded, as she looked into the far distance. "The fabled Lumina Academy, I'd heard whispers, but I never thought it actually existed" She pondered.

"I think it was called Utopia, right?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah" Atlas nodded. "The name apparently means a perfect city, or something? I guess nothing stays perfect forever" He added.

"If only Tartarus and Infernus would accept that" Keegan shrugged as he looked at the red planet above. "Then we wouldn't be in this mess" He added.

"All good things must come to an end" Mizu nodded. "One day Inchaya and Aodhan will be dust in the wind. I hope those who follow us will accept that as we do" She pondered.

The group slowly began embarking on the arduous walk towards the dark city of Utopia. The thunderous sound of meteors hitting the ground below cut through the eerie silence that had now fallen over the world. In the distance the smoke plume from the downed airship became larger and larger as flames ravaged the remains of the vessel.

"When this is all over, what will you do?" Ruby asked Mizu, as she perched on her shoulder.

"I guess... I'll go back to Inchaya and rebuild what remains" Mizu replied, as she smiled at the dragonet.

"No, I mean, personally, not professionally" Ruby smiled.

"Hmm..." Mizu pondered. "I hadn't actually thought about myself since... I can't even remember. For so long I had been focused on this one task, that I never..." She paused. "I never considered my own personal future" She sighed.

"You should let yourself breathe" Ruby nodded. "Take some time for yourself, Inchaya will need you, I'm sure, but there is more to life than work" She smiled.

"You're wise, for such a young dragon" Mizu smiled politely.

"What can I say, I have good role models" Ruby giggled.

"That feed you too many treats" Atlas laughed.

"Not enough, from my point of view" Ruby retorted, as Atlas laughed harder.

"What about you, Ruby?" Mizu asked. "What will you do?" She asked.

"I'll stay with Roisin" Ruby smiled. "I know that... eventually, there will be a day when I will outlive her, so I want to make the best of the time that we have together" Ruby replied. "I want to learn what it is to be human, so that when the day comes that I become a dragon, I can use what I have learned from humans to bring our races closer together, like they once were, at the city of Utopia" Ruby replied.

"That's a beautiful idea, Ruby" Keegan smiled. "We'll all work to help you make it become a reality" He added.

"Thank you, Keegan" Ruby cheered, Keegan chuckled and tossed her a treat, she flew to catch it in mid-air, as the five of them continued their journey towards Utopia.