After unloading the supplies from Aurora's back, they all split off on their own tasks.
Aurora went to go exploring by herself, while Augustus and the other elves began assessing the damage to their new shelter.
This left Storm all by himself, so he decided to wander the tunnels.
He stopped when he came across a large mirror. He stood before this same mirror 50 years ago. Curious how much he'd changed over the years. He stopped to look.
He had nearly doubled in size since the last time he saw his reflection and his body had considerably more battle scars now.
His horns had fully grown out to it's fullest length. The most troubling change to his features were his eyes.
When he stood before this mirror last, it was full of happiness and love. Now it reflected a deep sadness and anger, as well as a small amount of madness.
The dragon he was staring at seemed more sure of itself and it carried an air of authority.
This dragon was accustomed to giving orders and expected them to be followed to the letter.
"So, this is what people see when they look at me?" Thought Storm.
He traced the scar on his chest with a finger. It had grown along with the rest of his body, but the marks had begun to fade.
If Storm didn't know what to look for, he could easily have missed it amoung the scales along his chest.
A faint blue glow shined out of the scar. Storm knew this meant that his breath organ was reaching full capacity.
If he didn't start to discharge the organ in the next day or 2, then his health would start to slowly deteriorate.
Storm left the mirror and walked to his father's former study. Most of the reports and books had long since crumbled to dust.
Storm began sorting through them, putting those that were no longer of use in a neat pile for the elves to throw out later.
Something on the ground caught his eye. He picked up a small square of glass that was covered in so much dirt, that it was impossible to make out the image.
He blew the dust away and an image of his two parents came into view.
Elves had learned that by using magic, they could record what image they conjure in their minds on any surface.
Their favorite material was a square piece of glass like the one in Storm's hand.
His parents had commissioned an elven artist to make this for them many years ago. It depicted his two parents standing upright in a field filled with fresh spring flowers. With the sun setting in the background.
His father had an arm around his spouse and in his mother's arms was Storm while he was still a freshly hatched baby.
They seemed happier in the picture than he had ever seen them before. Storm smiled at the sight before hooking the picture back up in it's proper place on the wall.
A loud knock on the door turned Storm's thoughts back to the present.
"Enter!" Called Storm.
Augustus opened the door and kneeled before Storm.
"I hope I'm not interrupting, Overlord. "
"Not at all. I'm just trying to clear out some of the trash in this place.
So... what do you think of this place so far, Augustus?" Asked Storm.
"It's suitable for our needs as a temporary shelter while we wait for tensions to lower again. But it's isolation is also a problem.
Once we start going on the offensive again, then we'll need to move."
Storm shook his head.
"No! We will not be abandoning this place. We can set up temporary bases at areas of interest in the future but we need to set down roots if we are to put my future plans into effect." Explained Storm.
"And what exactly are these plans, Overlord? You haven't shared them with me yet?"
"I'll share them once we've finished preparing the base. For now, let us focus on getting this place into a 'livable' condition. " said Storm.
Augustus held up a scroll he kept in his hands.
"My men and I finished our assessment. Unfortunately this place is going to need a lot of work."
Storm took the scroll and began reading it. He grimaced when he saw the amount of things that would require addressing.
Cave supports requires reinforcement.
One Hot Spring chambers inaccessible due to cave collapse.
Greenhouse has overgrown.
Several living chambers and storage rooms inaccessible due to cave collapse.
Storm read each items out loud.
"Ok, some of these things are a cause of concern. But I feel that if we put in some extra work, then we should be able to get everything done." Replied Storm.
Augustus held out another scroll.
"There is a second page." He replied.
Storm took the scroll and began studying it.
This one addressed the shortages of supplies required to fix the above problems as well as to maintain the base.
"Some of the items are a bit harder to acquire, I admit. But we should be able to get these over time. Especially once we make contact with the surrounding settlements."
Augustus held out another scroll.
"There is a third page." He replied.
"I get the picture!! This place is going to require a lot of work!" Exclaimed Storm.
"I'm afraid so, sir."
Storm sighed in exhaustion.
"We'd better get started then. Out of all these items. The supports and the Greenhouse is the most urgent, followed by living spaces." Said Storm.
"Why the Greenhouse? Our current supply of food is more than adequate?" Asked Augustus.
"I plan to expand our numbers in the future and we'll need to expand our food production before hand. Furthermore, we'll need something to trade with once we make contact with other settlements that isn't gold."
"You're planning to build an army?"
"If necessary. " Storm replied.
With the meeting over, Storm left for the only Hot Spring chamber currently functioning.
His muscles were sore from flying all day and he intended to relax in a nice warm spring before turning in for the night.
As he entered the chamber, he found that someone else had the same idea and had beaten him to it.
"OHH!! SORRY!! I DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE IN HERE!" Exclaimed Storm as he saw Aurora relaxing in the spring.
"It's all right, Storm! Please join me!"
"I..I Shouldn't... I'll wait until you're done!" Stammered Storm.
"Please!! Don't!!" Pleaded Aurora.
After a moment's hesitation, Storm lowered himself into the waters.
As he relaxed into a corner, Aurora swam over to him and settled into position at his side.
"I still can't believe we're back here. I never thought I'd see this place again. " she said.
"It doesn't feel the same to me. It's just not the same without the people. " Storm replied.
"No... I suppose it's not..." Aurora said.
Storm turned his head towards Aurora.
Aurora... I must know... How many of our clan survived that day?"
She stiffened in his grip.
"I'm sorry! I shouldn't pry." Said Storm.
"No!! You have a right to know! You just caught me by suprise!"
She sighed before answering his question.
"Mostly it was just Pyros, me and the other younger dragons who managed to escape. Your parents stayed behind to buy us time to escape and all the other adults perished beforehand. "
"My siblings? Did they...?"
"Ohh, They're still alive! I managed to get them out and they've been relocated to a different nesting ground. They recently became adults! Your brother was named 'Pyrite' and your sister 'Lapis'."
"I could arrange a meeting for you if you'd like?"
Storm hesitated before answering.
"No... it would be best if you didn't. "
Storm's refusal shocked Aurora.
"Storm?..."
"No! I appreciate what you're trying to do, but please don't.! It's hard enough for me as it is!"
"Then why do this?" She asked.
"They've managed to move on, Aurora!
They have a happy and good life at their new home!
I would disrupt all of that!
I'm a constant reminder of the day they lost their birth parents. " Storm replied
"They deserve to be happy." Whispered Storm so softly that it could barely be heard.
"And what about you? Don't you deserve to be happy?" Asked Aurora.
"..... I think I gave up on happiness a long time ago." Storm replied.
Aurora had no answer.
After a brief moment of awkward silence, she spoke again.
"I'm sorry for judging you before."
"It's all right, Aurora. I won't hold it against you. Let's just forget about it."
She snuggled closer to him as they relaxed in the Hot Spring.