The train slowed to a halt as people hurried to gather their things to disembark. A young child's eyes locked on an oddity gently bobbing down the hall above people's heads; a bright yellow pom on the end of an antenna. He followed it until it reached the doorway and vanished out onto the platform. He rushed to the window as his mother was gathering their luggage to see a white, fluffy Moogle set down on a metal railing, wearing a bag over his shoulder.<br/><br/>Donta sighed. He was tasked with traveling to his Master's hometown in search of his old friends after years, only to find out their homes had been destroyed, families killed and admitted to an orphanage in the city. His Master would not like the news and Donta feared for the consequences of his anger, as he had witnessed with his other subordinates in his platoon. Donta wished he had better news, like knowing which orphanage they were admitted to, but because of the war, there were near countless in the Capital City.<br/><br/>Sighing heavily again, Donta began hovering once more, turned around to notice a young boy with his face pressed against the window of the train, intently staring at him excitedly. Now that he was close to home, he could use his magic, giving the boy a show he would not forget. He raised his small arm in the air, and snapped his fingers.<br/><br/>"Warp, Kupo!" he shouted, and vanished in a flash of light.<br/><br/>-------------------------------------------------------------------<br/><br/>Explosions rumbled all around him as people screamed and ran for their lives. Drake inched out into the street with Leola clutching his shirt from behind. Smoke filled the air and the rumbling became so loud that it drowned out the sound of screams. The sound of machinery and engines could be heard, along with metal tank treads and heavy tires on asphalt and dirt.<br/><br/>Suddenly a gust of wind cleared the smoke and Drake found himself standing before a tsunami of metal; the Imperial Army. The machines slowed to a halt and two large Magitek armored soldiers flanked a single heavily armored truck, which pulled ahead and halted mere meters before him, the side door opening and a tall, intimidating man stepped out. When he stepped around the open door, Drake saw that it was the King himself, Altrus.<br/><br/>"What do we have here?" he scoffed, "A hero? Are you intent to stand up to my entire army alone? Unarmed?" Drake stood his ground although he was sure Leola could feel his tremors through her grasp on his shirt.<br/><br/>"If I have to!" Drake shouted, "Leave us alone!"<br/><br/>"Or what?" The King replied, "Are you going to stop me?"<br/><br/>"I'll try!" Drake muttered. Only the King and Leola heard him. Altrus strode forward, full of arrogance and overconfidence, peering over Drake's shoulder at the cowering girl behind him. He raised a hand to Drake's face, ready to conjure a fire spell to kill the boy, but nothing happened. Realizing that he had indeed taken too long to find a host for the Dragon's Tear, his power had nearly vanished. A look of concern crossed his face for a moment, then was replaced by an evil sneer.<br/><br/>"I like you boy." He said, lowering his had as if showing mercy, "I'll make you a deal. Don't you wish that you had the power to defend yourself and your town from a threat such as my army?"<br/><br/>"O-Of course!" Drake replied, "What are you saying?"<br/><br/>"The deal? Oh right! Of course." Altrus said laughing, "I'll tell you what. I'll leave your town and friends alone, take my army and withdraw. I'll even consider this measly town off limits and protected. All you have to do is come with me."<br/><br/>"What do you want with me?" Drake asked.<br/><br/>"I'm offering you everything you want. I'm going to spare your town, and I'll give you the power to stop this army yourself!" he said, "However, instead you will join it as one of my Generals. I will give you power and you will serve me. In exchange, I spare your town and friends."<br/><br/>Drake hesitated. He heard Leola protesting behind him but he shook free of her grasp and inched forward. A couple of guards wielding polearms grabbed her by the shoulders to keep her from following. Drake stepped forward, looking around at the devastation and simply nodded. The King placed an amulet around his neck and as soon as the weight hit his chest, his heart felt like it caught fire.<br/><br/>He remembered the pain, the torture, and agony of the change. He got taller, wings grew from his back, horns from his head, and claws from his fingers and feet. His mouth and nose elongated into a snout and his skin turned into a scaly black hide. He had become a monster and felt every tear in muscle and break in bone. When it was done, his first thought was of Leola, and of how he must disgust her now. He stood up shakily and stumbled toward the King, his clothes in rags around him. He was guided into the back of a truck and his last memory before passing out was the cries of his friend.<br/><br/>---------------------------------------------------<br/><br/>Drake woke with a start and swung his arm, a bright red flash erupted from his hand and fire spread across the ceiling for a moment before going out, leaving only smouldering bits of wallpaper. It was the same dream he had every night. The last memory he had when he was last Human.<br/><br/>Ever since he left his hometown, he was forced to submit to the King and do anything he was commanded to, or at least he thought that at first. He was told to kill people, burn houses, decimate farm lands and generally impose a sense of Doom on the battlefield, showing off his demonic image and displaying the capabilities of his power to the subjects of the Kingdom. It was like that at first, but as time went on, he felt something slowly change in him and he found the impulse to obey grow lesser and lesser as the days went by. On a whim, he decided to keep up appearances and obey regardless, hoping for a moment when he could take advantage of his position, yet the time never came as of yet.<br/><br/>Sighing heavily, he opened the window to let the smoke out and put out the smouldering wallpaper, letting his long, scaled tail drag on the floor. He made his way to the kitchen of the small annexed area of the Guard house that stood on the edge of the castle grounds. He was given his own wing for his service, but the real reason was the King didn't want him around any other Humans or they would feel intimidated and moral would lower.<br/><br/>"Donta! Coffee!" Drake growled, "Oh right. He's gone." At his words, there was a flash of light and as if on cue, the moogle appeared in the kitchen. If he still had eyebrows, they would have raised at the coincidence of the matter, but the scales and bone of his face hardly portrayed his surprise.<br/><br/>"Oh, Good morning, Kupo!" Donta exclaimed, seeing him sitting at the table, "How was your sleep? Would you like some Kupo, I mean Coffee?"<br/><br/>"Yes, please." Drake growled, "You have returned. What of your travels?" Drake watched as the Moogle fluttered about the kitchen, grinding fresh coffee and boiling water.<br/><br/>"I did find your hometown, Master. However, your friends were not there, Kupo." he said stopping for a moment with a cup in his paw. he turned to solemnly look at Drake, "I learned that their homes were destroyed in the attack, their families lost, and they were sent to an orphanage here in the City." His news was met with a blank stare. Drake's red eyes widened slightly and he sat in silence for a moment. When Donta decided to continue making coffee, Drake suddenly slammed his fist into the table, causing it to splinter under his fist. The King's promise was now starting to look superficial but then again, he was hiding something from the King as well. Still, his friends were in the City at least, but there were so many Orphanages it would be like finding a needle in a haystack.<br/><br/>Donta began cleaning up the broken ceramic from the cup he had dropped when Drake had struck the table as Drake looked out the window at the high wall surrounding the Palace grounds. Would his friends even want to see him again? Even if they did get over his appearance, he had done so many despicable things, killed so many people, that maybe they wouldn't want to associate with him anymore. He was sure that living in the City they would have heard of all the bad things he had done. Would they fear him now? Think of him as Evil? Should he just give up on trying to find them?<br/><br/>The thought of Leola drifted to his mind. Her smile she always wore when they were around each other, the memory of her perfume, the sound of her voice. He wanted to see her again. But should he? Like this?<br/><br/>A cup of coffee was laid before him by the hovering Moogle and a napkin. Hooking a claw into the handle, he raised it to his mouth and downed the whole cup of boiling liquid in one gulp, laying it back on the table.<br/><br/>"Thank you, friend." he muttered. Donta just hovered and stared at his master quizzically, "May I ask you of another favor?"<br/><br/>"I am yours to command, Master" He simply responded. Drake tapped the table and Donta obediently landed on it, standing next to the broken, splintered hole.<br/><br/>"This is not a command. I'm asking as a friend." he growled. The squinted eyes of the Moogle nearly seemed to open entirely but you could clearly see surprise on it's face.<br/><br/>"A F-Friend, Kupo?" he stammered.<br/><br/>"Yes." Drake replied, "It's a big favor. Perhaps impossible."<br/><br/>"What is it, Kupo?"<br/><br/>"Can you find my friends?" he asked, "Find them, and let them know that I'm alright at least." The Moogle's head tilted to the side for a moment, a paw going to his chin.<br/><br/>"Okay." he finally said, "I will try, Kupo."<br/><br/>"Thank you, Donta." Drake replied, nearly smiling. Donta nodded, snapped his fingers and vanished again in a flash of light.<br/><br/>"Warp, Kupo-o-o-o-o-o!" His voice echoed...