It all started with a death. Namely, it was Queen Oasis's death. But she was not killed by any of her daughters. She was killed by a scavenger. It all began on a cloudless night. There was a small sound outside the stronghold. The sound traveled to Queen Oasis' ears. SandWing ears are twice as good as normal ears so any little sound could be heard by a SandWing.
The huge sandy colored dragon was asleep in a huge nest with a camel hair blanket wrapped around her. As soon as she heard the sound she woke up with a start, as if she had been stabbed in the chest by a venomous tail. She got out of the nest hurriedly and hurried along the dark halls, breathing fire to light her way.
When she whirled around a corner, she collided with two of her daughters, Blister and Blaze.
"Ow," Blaze complained, "Mother, you stepped on my foot."
Blister said nothing, but stepped into a corner to get out of the queen's way. Her dark, obsidain black eyes were fixed on Queen Oasis, in that unsettling way she had. From the moment Blister hatched, Oasis knew that this was the daughter who was going to kill her. Her oldest daughter, Burn, was bigger and stronger, but Oasis and Burn got along, in a way. They understood each other, except for Burn's obsession with mutilating animals. Blister, on the other talon, always seamed to be calculating the moments until her mother's death. She'd done that ever since she was a small dragonet - ever since she realized that killing her mother would make her the queen.
Go ahead and challenge me, Oasis thought scornfully, glaring at Blister. I'd squash you like a bug and you know it.
"What's the hurry?" Blister asked smoothly. "Is there a royal crisis. Let me guess - Smolder tried to run off with his girlfriend again."
"No, I took care of her," Oasis said. "I'm just going to check the treasury."
"Ooo, sparkly things," Blaze yawned. "Good night, mother."
Dizzy Blaze, Queen Oasis thought. She'd make a terrible queen, but she's an acceptable daughter.
She heard claws click on the stone behind her and whirled around. Blister held up her talons and flared her wings.
"Sorry to startle you," she said unconvincingly. "I just wondered if I could come with you."
Oasis hesitated, but she knew if she said no, Blister would sneak along anyway. It was better to keep her where you could see her.
"Fine. But don't touch anything."
They whisked down the long passage that led to the four treasure rooms.
Everything looked in order, the torches were on and flickering, the doors were closed and locked. But there was a strange smell. Oasis crouched to peer under the doors. There was a large gap between the doors and the floor... Not big enough for a dragon but...
"Do you smell scavenger?" she asked Blister.
Blister wrinkled her nose. "I wouldn't know what those smell like. They're too bulky and squishy for my taste."
Oasis unlocked the doors using the right key from around her neck. She went in and quickly looked through all the rooms. She came in glowering with rage.
"That looks ominous," Blister remarked.
"Scavengers," spat the queen. "Robbed me. How dare they?" She lashed her tail, hissing.
"Wake up Burn and tell her to meet me outside."
"Burn?" Blister echoed.
"Just in case there are a lot of them and we need to fight," Oasis said. "I've seen what their tiny swords can do. I'm not such a fool to go out there alone."
"But why Burn, when I'm here?" Blister asked.
Oasis gave her a withering look. "I need a real fighter," she said. "Not someone who thinks she can use her brain to get herself out of anything, and isn't even as smart as she thinks she is."
"I see," Blister said coldly. "I'll wake her at once."
She took a step then, turned back. "What did they take?"
"Small things for the most part," Oasis growled. "But they also took the Eye of Onyx." That actually made Blister's face twitch, as if a hint of a real emotion - worry? surprise? - was trying to come through.
"We'll get it back," Oasis promised. "And have roasted scavenger for breakfast."
"I'm going out there. Wake Burn, and hurry."
"Oh, yes. Right away," Blister said.
Oasis charged into the courtyard, spread her wings, and lifted to the sky. She thought Blister had turned to look at the treasure rooms instead.
I forgot to lock them up again, Oasis thought uneasily. But this will only take a minute. And if she's stupid enough to take anything, I'll have a good excuse to kill her. She's smarter than that.
She wheeled to the outer walls, scanning the sands. A disturbing thought shook her. What if she doesn't wake Burn. What am I going to do with no backup?
Then she spotted the three scavengers. Scab-infested idiot monkeys.
Oasis growled and folded her wings, dropping silently behind them. Maybe she could scare them to death. Prey always tasted better when it died like that.
Only three of them, she thought. I don't need to wait for Burn, if Blister's even getting her. I can certainly handle three annoying scavengers by myself. She narrowed her eyes and walked closer towards the sound of squeaking.
After all ... what's the worst that could happen?
Suddenly, one of the scavengers looked behind him and saw Queen Oasis. He squeaked to the others and they held up their tiny swords and flung them at Oasis.
She roared and crashed into a scavenger, but she missed by an inch. The scavenger ran, squealing. Then one of the tougher looking scavengers threw a tiny sword, which landed on Oasis' tail. She roared again as the sword sliced off her poisonous barb.
Then she leaped at the scavenger who had sliced off her poisonous barb. The scavenger ducked as Oasis leaped over him. Then the scavenger took another tiny sword and aimed it at the direction of Oasis' eyes. She lifted her wings but the scavenger was faster and the tiny sword flew into her eye and she roared with pain. She could just make out a dragon in the shadows. That was the last thing that she saw before she died.
The dragon in the shadows lifted her head as she saw her mother dead. "Finally my plan can start," she hissed. "Finally I will be the queen. Finally my mother is dead."