Okay, wow, the support that you all gave me on the first chapter was incredible, thank you all so much! I can honestly not believe how many of you enjoyed this. I gathered as much that you all wanted me to continue, so continue I shall, enjoy! Also, I'm changing the bold and normal text around, because I saw that some of my comments were hard to see.
I don't own Wings of Fire or the Everything Wrong With series!
Normal Text = The text of the actual series
Bold Text = My comment
Six years later…
Chapter One
Clay didn't think he was the right dragon for a big heroic destiny. Oh silly Clay...you are the dragon for this, a big pompous Nightwing said so!
Oh, he wanted to be. He wanted to be the great Mudwing savior of the dragon world, glorious and brave. He wanted to do all the wonderful things expected of him. He wanted to look at the world, figure out what was broken, and fix it. If you wanted to fix the things wrong with the WORLD, you'd have to be doing it twenty-four seven, it wouldn't be a one time job.
But he wasn't a natural-hatched hero. He had no legendary qualities at all. He liked sleeping more than studying, and he kept losing chickens in the caves during hunting practice because he was paying attention to his friends instead of watching for feathers. Why does Clay, the biggest food lover of the heroes, lose chickens during practice? I know he cares about his friends, but come on!
He was all right at fighting. But "all right" wasn't going to stop the war and save the dragon tribes. Although the group barely does any actual fighting to end the war, it's actually a lot of talking more than anything.
He needed to be extraordinary. He was the biggest dragonet, so he was supposed to be the scary, tough one. The minders wanted him to be terrifyingly dangerous. Yeah, good luck with that.
Clay felt about as dangerous as cauliflower. Oh wow, he's confident…cauliflower is probably the most scary thing out there, terrifying little vegetable hating kids for centuries!
"Fight!" his attacker howled, flinging his across the cavern. Clay crashed into the rock wall and scrambled up again, trying to spread his mud-colored wings for balance. Red talons raked at his face and he ducked away. Doesn't Kestrel want this war to end? Why's she potentially killing Clay?
"Come on," the red dragon snarled. "Stop holding back. Find the killer inside you and let it out." Hahaha, Kestrel thinks this dragonet has a killer inside of him? Yeah no.
"I'm trying!" Clay said. "Maybe if we could stop and talk about it-" Clay's right here, talking about it is what's going to get them out of most of their problems. Fighting almost gets them no where at all.
She lunged for him again. "Feint to the left! Roll right! Use your fire!" Clay tried to duck under her wing to attack her from below, but of course he rolled the wrong way. H-how? Is Clay really that stupid? Or can he just not think under pressure?
One of her talons smashed him to the ground, and he yelped with pain.
"WHICH LEFT WAS THAT, USELESS?" Kestrel bellowed in his ear. "Are all Mudwings this stupid? OR ARE YOU JUST DEAF?" Kestrel is a jerk to Clay.
Well, if you keep that up, I will be soon, Clay thought. No kidding.
The Skywing lifted her claws and he wriggled free.
"I don't know about other Mudwings," he protested, licking his sore talons. "Obviously. But perhaps we could try fighting without all the shouting and see-" He stopped, hearing the familiar hiss that came before one of Kesrel's fire attacks. Kestrel! Use flamethrower!
He threw his wings over his head, tucked his long neck in, and rolled into the maze of stalagmites that studded one corner of the cave. Flames blasted the rocks around him, singeing the tip of his tail. How do stalagmites only stud one corner of the cave? Did the minders break all the others ones? Cause if so, the minders are jerks to nature.
"Coward!" the older dragon bellowed. He's not a coward for dodging your fire! He'd be dead if he didn't fun from it!
She smashed one of the rock columns into a shower of sharp black pebbles. Clay covered his eyes and almost immediately felt her stamp down hard on his tail. Why do dragons have that weak spot there, anyway? Seems like an evolutionary defect to me.
"OW!" he yelled. "You said stomping tails was cheating!" Welcome to the real world, Clay.
He seized the closest stalagmite between his claws and scrabbled up on top of it. From his perch near the roof, he glared down at his guardian. Clay's stares are probably doing nothing other than make him look ridiculous.
"I'm your teacher," Kestrel snarled. "Nothing I do is cheating. That is not true in any way at all.
"Now get down here and fight like a Skywing." Does Kestrel think that all of a sudden, Clay's going to turn into a Skywing with beautiful fighting skills?
But I'm NOT a Skywing, Clay thought rebelliously. I'm a Mudwing! I don't like setting things on fire or flapping around in circles biting at dragon necks. His teeth still ached from Kestrel's jewel hard scales. That's dragonist, and also, how are Kestrel's scales jewel hard? That doesn't make any sense. Lastly, he actually tried fighting like a Skywing?
"Can't I fight one of the others?" he asked. "I'm much better at that." The other dragonets were his own size (nearly), and they didn't cheat (well, most of the time). He actually liked fighting with them. Maybe Clay is more violent than we think he is…he likes fighting his friends?
"Oh, yes? Which opponent would you prefer, the stunted Sandwing or the lazy Rainwing?" Kestrel asked. She calls Glory lazy even though in the series she is evidently NOT lazy. She hasn't noticed this yet?
Because I'm sure you'll get to choose out on the battlefield." Her tail glowed like embers as she lashed it back and forth. Sadly, I have to agree with Kestrel on this one, why'd Tui have to make one of the most dislikable characters right? It's a sin.
"Glory's not lazy," Clay said loyally. "She's just not built for fighting, that's all. Webs says there's not much to fight about in the rain forest because the Rainwings have all the food they want. He says that's why they've stayed out of the war so far, because none of the rival queens want Rainwings in their armies anyway. He says-" I'm gonna be honest, this is a genius way to explain why the Rainwings aren't in the war. Defending the friend while the main character goes on a tangent. Great work! Sin removed!
"STOP YAMMERING AND GET DOWN HERE!" Kestrel roared. Kestrel has zero patience.
She reared up on her back legs and flared her wings so she suddenly looked three times bigger.
With a yelp of alarm, Clay tried to leap to the next stalagmite, but his wings unfurled too slowly and he smacked into the side of it instead. I am slowly and sarcastically clapping at Clay's awfully inept fighting skills.
Sparks flew as his claws scraped down the jagged rock. He let out another yowl of pain as Kestrel snaked her head in between the columns, seized his tail in her teeth, and yanked him out into the open. Kestrel is really against battle tactics, isn't she? Wouldn't you go into an area where it was harder for an enemy to hit you if you were fighting?
Her talons closed around his neck as she hissed in his ear. "Where's the violent little monster I saw when you hatched? That's the dragon we need for the prophecy." Yet you'll never say anything about almost everyone else being a pacifist.
"Gawp." Clay squawked, clawing at her grip. He could feel the strange burn scars on her palms scraping against his scales. Wow, don't dragons shed their scales? If their reptiles, they should. Either this scar is magical or these dragons aren't really dragons.
This was how battle training with Kestrel always ended – with him unconscious and then sore or limping for days afterward. Oh geez, that's some vigorous battle training if it leaves you sore for days.
Fight back, he thought. Get mad! Do something! But although he was the biggest of the dragonets, they were still a year away from being full grown, and Kestrel towered over him. Towered? Isn't he like 90% of her size? I'd say she's only slightly bigger…
He tried to summon some helpful violent rage, but all he could think was, It'll be over soon, and then I can go have dinner. Clay is really bad at controlling HIS OWN mind.
So, not the most heroic train of though. Ya darn tootin'
Suddenly Kestrel let out a roar and dropped him. Fire blasted over Clay's head as he hit the floor with a thud.
The red dragon whirled around. Behind her, panting defiantly, was the Seawing dragonet, Tsunami. A red-gold scale was caught between her sharp white teeth. She spat it out and glared at their teacher. A new challenger approaches! (One battle later) Tsunami has joined the fight!
"Stop picking on Clay," Tsunami growled. "Or I'll bite you again." Her deep blue scales shimmered like cobalt glass in the torchlight. The gills in her long neck were pulsing like they always did when she was angry. Somebody's triggered!
Kestrel sat back and flicked her tail around to examine the bite mark. She bared her teeth at Tsunami. "Aren't you sweet. Protecting a dragon who tried to kill you while you were still and egg." Does it really sound like Clay would do that? That's like taking toys from your sibling as a baby, and others assuming that you're going to be a thief when you grow up.
"But luckily you big dragons were there to save our lives," Tsunami said, "and we sure appreciate it, because now we get to hear about it all the time." Sarcastic comment is sarcastic.
She marched around to stand between Clay and Kestrel.
Clay winced. He hated hearing this story. He didn't understand it. He'd never want to hurt the other dragonets. And can none of the minders actually see that?
So why had he attacked their eggs during hatching? Did he really have a killer monster inside him somewhere? Spoiler alert Clay, you don't.
The other minders, Webs and Dune, said he'd been ferocious when he hatched. They'd had to throw him in the ricer to protect the other eggs from him. Kestrel wanted him to find that monster and use it when he fought. I can just imagine this conversation.
Dune-Holy crud! He's trying to smash the other eggs! What do we do?
Webs-He's a newborn, right?
Dune-Yes
Webs-Can barely function, or swim or anything?
Dune-Yes!
Webs-Throw him in the river, he'll be fine.
But he was afraid if he ever did, he would hate himself, and so would everybody else. Thinking about what he'd nearly done to his friends made him feel like all the fire had been sucked out of him. The minders are harsh, then, bringing up something he couldn't control, and knowing he feels awful about it.
He didn't particularly want to be a violent angry monster, even if Kestrel thought it was an improvement. It is most definitely NOT an improvement if the main character becomes unlikable.
But maybe that was the only way to make the prophecy come true. Maybe that monster was his destiny.
"All right," Kestrel said dismissively, "We're finished here anyway. I'll mark another failure in your scroll, Mudwing." She snorted a small flame into the air and swept out of the cave. Does anyone else see Severus Snape in Kestrel?
Clay flopped down on the floor as soon as her red tail had vanished from sight. It felt like every one of his scales were stinging from the burns. "She's going to be so means to you during your training tomorrow," he said to Tsunami. Kestrel is once again, potentially a jerk to kids.
"Oh no," the Seawing dragonet gasped. "I've never seen Kestrel be mean before! That'll be so unexpected and out of character!" Hahaha! Wait, you can't be sarcastic! That's Glory's job!
"Ow," Clay groaned. "Don't make me laugh. I think my ribs are broken." Yet we see no actual indication that Clay laughed at Tsunami's joke.
"Your ribs are not broken," Tsunami said, poking him in the side with her nose. "Dragon bones are almost as hard as diamonds. You're fine. Get up and jump in the river." Why would you stop Kestrel from hurting Clay if you thought he was perfectly fine?
"No!" Clay buried his head under his wing. "Too cold!"
"Jump in the ricer" was Tsunami's solution to everything. Bored? Aching bones? Dry scales? Brain overstuffed with the history of the war? Yet only one of these problems would actually be solved by jumping in the river, you short minded dragonet, Tsunami!
"Jump in the river!" she'd shout whenever any of the other dragonets complained. She certainly did not care that she was the only one who could breathe underwater or that most dragon tribes hate getting wet. So is Tsunami that one friend who pushes you into things you don't want to just because they like them? Eesh, it's a good thing one of the books is solely based on her character development.
Clay didn't mind being wet, but he couldn't stand being cold, and the underground river that flowed through their cave home was always freezing. That river's gotta come from some surface body of water, and we've never heard of snow from where they're located, so shouldn't the river be at least lukewarm? Or are they just REALLY far underground?
"Get in," Tsunami ordered. She seized his tail between her front talons and started dragging him toward the river. "You'll feel better." If this exact scene had different words, it could easily be in a horror film/novel.
"I will not!" Clay shouted, clawing at the smooth stone floor. "I'll feel colder! Stop it! Go away! Argh!" His protests went up in a cloud of bubbles as Tsunami dumped him in the icy water. Tsunami is a jerk to Clay.
When he resurfaced, she was floating beside him, ducking her head and splashing water over her scales like a beautiful overgrown fish. Clay felt like a gawky brown glob next to her. Don't worry, Clay, you won't be the ugly duckling for long.
He sploshed into the shallows and lay down on a submerged rock ledge, with his head resting on the bank of the river. He wouldn't admit it, but the burns and aches did feel better in the water. The current helped wash away the smoky rock dust caught between his dry scales. So maybe jumping in the ricer was an okay idea at the time, doesn't mean it helps clear your head from war facts.
Still too cold, though. Clay scratched at the rock below him. Why couldn't there be just a little mud down here? Because the minders chose the one spot in the entire continent that didn't have mud in it so that your powers could be revealed later! Or for the convenience of the story, who knows?
"Kestrel will be sorry one day, when I'm queen of the Seawings," Tsunami said, swimming up and down the narrow channel. A Seawing queen would have no power over a dragon who didn't live in her kingdom. You know everything about the war, but nothing about monarchies?
"I thought only a queen's daughters or sisters could challenge her for her throne," Clay said. Tsunami swam so fast. He wished he had webs between his talons, too, or gills, or a tail like hers, so powerful she could nearly empty the ricer with one big splash. Trust me, you'll be thankful that you're a Mudwing and not a Seawing later.
"Well, maybe the Seawing queen is my mother and I'm a lost princess," she said. "Like in the story." So Tsunami's now a three year old who thinks that they'll be the princess in the Disney movies. Only her dream actually comes true. Aww…I wanted to be a princess…
Everything the dragonets knew about the outside world came from scrolls picked up by the Talons of Peace. Their favorite was The Missing Princess, a legend about a runaway Seawing dragonet whose royal family tore up the whole ocean looking for her. At the end she found her way home and her parents welcomed her with open wings and feasting and joy. Except that is in no way how the story will actually go down.
Clay always skipped the adventures in the middle of the story. He just liked the last part – the happy mothers and father. And the feasting. The feasting sounded pretty great, too. Poor, ever hungry Clay.
"I wonder what my parents are like," he said. You will be severely disappointed.
"I wonder if any of our parents are still alive," Tsunami said.
Clay didn't like to think about that. He knew dragons were dying in the war every day – Kestrel and Webs brought back news of bloody battles, scorched land, and burning piles of dragon bodies. But he had to believe his parents were still safe. "Do you think they ever miss us?" Geez, they didn't even wait to start loading this heavy baggage on the dragonets, thye had no childhood innocence!
"Definitely." Tsunami flicked a spray of water at him with her tail. "I bet mine were frantic when Webs stole my egg. Just like in the story." Wait, she knows Webs stole her egg, but she doesn't know where from? How do you hide something like that?
"And mine tore apart the marshes," Clay said. They'd all imagined scenes of their parents' desperate searches ever since they were young dragonets. Clay liked the idea that someone out there was looking for him…and that someone missed him and wanted him back. Foreshadowing!
Tsunami flipped onto her back, gazing up at the stone roof with her translucent green eyes. "Well, the Talons of Peace knew what they were doing," she said bitterly. "No one would ever find us down here." Until one of you leaves the door open of course.
They listened to the river gurgle and the torches crackle for a moment. Honestly, this is such a bonding moment for Tsunami and Clay, and I'm sure they've had many of these moments, but why are they all lost afterwards? They don't even change after these honest moments of friendship.
"We won't be underground forever," Clay said, trying to make her feel better. "I mean, if the Talons of Peace want us to stop this war, they have to let us out sometime." He scratched behind his ear thoughtfully. "Starflight says it's only two more years." He only had to hold on that long. "And then we can go home and eat as many cows as we want." They've had to endure this for so long, that of course they want to leave, but not being full grown, they'd be severely underprepared, so bad move by the minders…I'm looking at you, Kestrel.
"Well, first we save the world," Tsunami said. "And then we can go home." B-but, what about the cows?
"Right," said Clay. How they were going to save the world was a little fuzzy, but everyone seemed to think they'd figure it out when the time came. Wait, they've been studying everything about the war's history, but haven't tried to figure out how they're going to stop it?
Clay pulled himself out of the ricer, his waterlogged wings heavy and drooping. He spread them in front of one of the torches, arching his neck and trying to get warm. Feeble waves of heat wafted against his scales.
"Unless…" Tsunami said. Aha! There's always a catch!
Clay lowered his head to look at her. "Unless what?"
"Unless we leave sooner," she said. She flipped over and pulled herself out of the water in one graceful motion. Without even discussing how you're going to save the world when you get out?
"Leave?" Clay echoed, startled. "How? On our own?" How else would you do it? I doubt Kestrel would help.
"Why not?" she said. "If we can find a way out – why should we have to wait another two years? I'm ready to save the world now, aren't you?" No, you are NOT ready to save the world, we have five more books to go before you're ready.
Clay wasn't sure he'd ever be ready to save the world. He figured the Talons of Peace would tell them what they had to do. Only the three guardian dragons – Kestrel, Webs, and Dune, knew where the dragonets were hidden, but there was a whole network of Talons out there getting ready for the prophecy. If they did wait, though, they'd probably end up choosing a queen that they didn't want to, but then again, they're all pretty awful candidates.
"We can't stop the war by ourselves," he said. "We wouldn't know where to start." Then start strategizing rather than playing out skits of how the war began!
Tsunami flapped her wings at him in exasperation, showering him with cold droplets. And just as he was getting dry!
"We can too stop the war on our own," she said. "That's the whole point of the prophecy." Tsunami would be great at Literature Sins. (See what I did there :D)
"Maybe in two years," Clay said. Maybe by then I'll have found my dangerous side. Maybe then I'll be the ferocious fighter Kestrel wants me to be. High hopes, and little chance buddy.
"Maybe sooner," she said stubbornly. "Just think about it, all right?"
He shifted his feet. "All right. I'll think about it." At least that way he could stop arguing with her.
Tsunami cocked her head. "I hear dinner!" The faint sound of dismayed mooing echoed up the tunnel behind them. She poked Clay cheerfully. "Race you to the hall!" She whirled and pounded away without waiting for a response. Tsunami just started a race with an injured dragon, so she's destined to win…for shame, Tsunami…for shame.
The torches in the battle room seemed dimmer, and cold water was seeping under Clay's scales. He folded his wings and swept his tail through the debris of the smashed rock column. Oh yeah, I completely forgot about that…should I feel bad?
Tsunami was crazy. The five dragonets weren't ready to stop the war. They wouldn't even know how to survive on their own. Maybe Tsunami was brave and tough like a hero should be, but Sunny and Glory and Starflight…Clay thought all the things that might hurt them and wished he could give them his own scales and claws and teeth for extra protection. How would that help? That gives them like 1% more damage and one extra hit point…also, you would be defenseless.
Besides, there was no way to escape the caves. The Talons of Peace had made sure of that. Oh ho ho! No they didn't.
Still, part of him couldn't help wondering what it would be like to go home now instead of waiting another two years. Back to the marshes, to the swamps, to a whole tribe of Mudwings who looked like him and thought like him…back to his parents, whoever they were… Wait, how would he go back to the swamps if he had never even been there in consciousness? He still hadn't hatched, right?
What if they could do it?
What if the dragonets could escape, and survive, and save the world…their own way? Their own way consists of being very naïve, getting thrown in prisons, and nearly dying. Good luck!
SIN COUNT…86
SENTENCE…BATTLE TRAINING WITH KESTREL