Svetlana

Pearlcatchers were a blight on the Starfall Isles as far as Svetlana was concerned. The Lightweaver should have never tried to replace imperials. They took everything apart to investigate it. Why settle for observing something, or seeking it out, when you could induce it artificially?

The answer was empathy. The answer was that most dragons would have compassion for their test subjects. Most dragons wouldn't consider everyone who didn't have a pearl as undeserving of respect. And yes, Svetlana knew some good pearlcatchers. There had been several among her clan, before they'd all been killed. It was clans- no, cults like this one that were the problem. It wasn't just pearlcatchers, but it was usually pearlcatchers, with their disdain for "lesser" dragons, that decided to take living things apart to find out how they worked.

An emperor was abhorrent to her. To any imperial. To almost any dragon. But to these people... It was a curiosity. It wasn't something to avoid, to treat with pity and fear and disgust, it was an object of their fascination and study. They called it science. Svetlana called it murder. They had taken her sisters. They had taken her mother, her aunts, her cousins. There were only eight of them left now. Their clan had never been large - it was why they'd been an easy target - but there had been hundreds. Not eight.

She heard them talking. Talking about if eight would be enough. Their largest experiment had slain fifty at once. Svetlana liked to hope that some had escaped. She rubbed at the magic-supressing gauntlets encircling her wrists. If only...

She couldn't blame herself for the casualties, for their loss. She was their best mage, but she was more of a healer than a fighter. They hadn't thought they'd need strong defences. Had thought the Arcanist would protect them. It seemed unbearably naïve to think of, imprisoned by yet more of the Arcanist's children purportedly researching for their deity's benefit.

So Svetlana didn't know who to thank that they at least hadn't managed to actually form one yet. At least her clan were at peace for now, although according to legend and her own burial rites it was possible for one to manifest this late. Hopefully nothing would happen. But the bodies stacking up unnerved her. They had always known there was risk in having so many imperials in one clan, that was why so few did it. Most of the members had come from small family groups. But they had done it anyway, and now...

Svetlana sighed. There was no point thinking about the past when she probably wouldn't survive the next few days. More than that, she wasn't sure she could survive the loss of her clan even without the murderous pearlcatchers outside. She still hadn't processed her grief.

"Sleep, sister." The imperial speaking was not Svetlana's sister. Normally, the word would be an acceptable honourific. But today, Svetlana's sister had died. She gestured rudely at her clanmate.

With a sigh, they turned away and did their best to rest. Svetlana knew that she should do the same. It was then that she noticed a pearlcatcher looking at her. Blue, crystal, arcane. She spat at the smaller dragon with disdain.

"I'm Skywall." He said.

There was something earnest about him. No one else had told her their name. Maybe that was why she kept watching instead of looking away.

He looked behind himself shiftily. "This used to be my clan. I want to help you get out."

"Take off my cuffs." She replied evenly. There would be no trickery, no psychological torment to enhance the results of their experiments. They could restrain her without them, theoretically, but it'd give her a fighting chance. And the first time she'd fought this clan she hadn't known the stakes. Had thought it was about territory, not genocide.

"Okay. Give them here, and get your friends." Svetlana gaped at him, unmoving. "Quickly! They'll be back soon."

Within moments, she was free as were her clanmates. They didn't stick around. She couldn't blame them - they'd never been particularly close. Wanted to leave this place behind, to get away before an emperor could emerge from the bodies of their dead family. Svetlana didn't take to the skies straight away, instead she looked at the pearlcatcher.

"Aren't you going to join your friends?" He said.

"Will you be okay?"

He shrugged. Svetlana wasn't satisfied.

"Where will you go? You won't be safe in the Arcanist's domain, they'll hunt you down for your betrayal. It'll be worse because you're one of them."

"I'm not one of them."

Svetlana hesitated. "I owe you a debt. I will make sure you escape the Starfall Isles alive."

"I'll be fine. I'm used to traveling." Skywall wore a half-smile on his face. His weariness struck her. Almost like he wasn't expecting to make it out of there alive.

"The quickest way out of here is into the Wandering Contagion. You'll need a healer."

"Well then, lead the way."