It was then she realised how big of an idiot she'd been. She didn't need Queen Blizzard at all. Blizzard wasn't important anymore. Or her tribe. She suddenly didn't care about her tribe at all.
And Swan? She did love him, for a while, but he wasn't important and never will be again.
"Oh sneezing walruses! Open your eyes!"
Gelid forced her eyes opened, even as they screamed to close, to shelter from further harm. But she had to do everything that dragon said.
Tiny droplets started falling to the ground and lightning crackled behind her. On the plateau in front of her was Mist staring at an icewing that Gelid never saw before. He was slightly bigger than Mist, and looked like Blizzard except without the vibrant string of blue and white scales down his back. His eyes were dauntingly dark blue - almost completely black.
Queen Auklet stood next to the unfamiliar icewing. She stared at Gelid with mild curiosity and a cocky smile. "You should've done that at the start. That would've been useful," she said to the icewing.
Tsunami wasn't at the entrance of the cavity but a batch of seawing soldiers occupied the cave space, staring down each tunnel. Mist wasn't fighting either, instead frozen in a state of disbelief.
The icewing smirked. "I didn't think it'd work but it did."
"Perfect," Queen Auklet said.
"Father?" Mist stepped forward carefully and eyed the unfamiliar icewing with courage that she seemed to have lost. "Is - is that you?" Her tone was unlike Gelid had ever heard. It was a mix of anxiousness and confusion.
The icewing turned to face Mist. "Yes, it's me, my daughter," he smiled proudly.
Oh, Gelid realised. North. Prince North. He's returned and I have the honour of serving him. This is better than whatever I felt for Blizzard.
"You died - you died long ago." She stepped back. "Is this a mask? Reveal your true form!" Mist demanded, dazed but still strong. She reached a talon to his face and North carefully grabbed her wrist, his claws clinking on the copper bracelet. He stared at the bracelet and then lowered her talon.
"No, no, this is me. I promise I'll explain everything to you. Everything," he said, glancing at Gelid. "But first, I want to say how proud I am of you. I've always been proud but now, I'm even prouder. My daughter..."
A big burly cyan seawing descended from above and perched herself next to Queen Auklet. She glared at Gelid with the ferocity to crack glaciers in half. "Permission to execute this icewing, your majesty?" Asked the cyan seawing with an unmoving stare.
Queen Auklet looked at North, as if to ask him instead.
"Absolutely not," North said. Hah, North was a very important dragon. Of course, even Queen Auklet would need him for orders.
"No," Queen Auklet instructed to the cyan seawing. The seawing didn't grumble but her stare intensified, as if wishing the queen would change her mind. "Ice got your tongue, Commander?"
"She killed my wife," said the seawing commander sharply. "She killed Azure."
"Tragedies happen, Turquoise. They're inevitable. Azure was a loyal and brave soldier. I promise you a proper burial for her." Queen Auklet pointed at two soldiers behind Mist. "You two! Retrieve Azure's body down there. Carefully. If I see any fresh scratches then there will be two unfortunate seawings being dragged through the desert."
The two seawings nodded and lifted up into the air.
"As soon as we're done here, we're going back," Queen Auklet said to North. "I hope you don't plan to bring this one along." She pointed to Gelid.
"Of course I do," He replied.
"Hmph," said Turquoise.
"What have you done to her?" Mist trudged to stare at Gelid closely.
"You care about this dragon, don't you?" North asked her.
Mist considered it. "So what if I do?" She responded to him.
"Nothing, nothing at all. It's good to care about your tribe," North said. "But I also know that she has unwavering loyalty to your aunt. I won't let an icewing die but I also won't let her spoil our plans."
I do not, Gelid thought. She wanted to say to him that she had no loyalty to Blizzard anymore but then she remembered to stay silent, just like he ordered. I'm loyal to you and will always be.
"Where are you taking us?" Mist asked.
"I'm taking you home, to where I've been all these years waiting for you," North said. "To the Bay of a Thousand Scales. Come with me, Mist, I want to tell you everything but not here."
Mist regarded what he said and then glanced at Mist.
Come on, Mist. You want to see your father. He's the most important dragon in the world.
"Fine," Mist said, as if reading Gelid's mind. "But you can't expect her to fly there. Look at her, I doubt she could even walk properly," she said to North, jerking her head at Gelid.
North looked bewildered for a moment, thinking of something. "I - I - you're right. I didn't think of that."
"You can heal her, can't you?" Mist asked.
"Now that would be a waste of magic, my animus friend," Queen Auklet said, receiving a glare from North. "But by all means, go ahead, animus icewing."
"If I may, don't waste it on her when there are dangerous dragons like Anemone," Turquoise said.
"If the soldiers wrapped her snout in the chains I enchanted to keep her from using her magic, then Anemone shouldn't pose a threat," North said to Turquoise.
"Perfect," said Queen Auklet.
"You did what?" Mist said, surprised. "You can do that?"
"I think so. I haven't ever used magic like that but - I'll explain to you later," He said to Mist, and then walked up to Gelid. "Heal this dragon completely."
Gelid felt her ribs fuse into place. She felt the throbbing pain on her head disappear and her eyes become clear. She felt the long cut down her neck close up and the end of her tail grow spikes. Such a shame though. That would've made a good story to anyone that asked but also, it wasn't everyday that North healed a dragon.
"Good now come with me," North instructed. "You can stay here if you want, if you don't fly off," he said to Mist.
"Where are you going?" Mist asked.
"To have a look inside, make sure everything to going to plan."
"What plan?"
"To-"
"Why don't you tell her later, when we're safer far from Jade Mountain?" Queen Auklet asked. "The mountain between the two most guarded kingdoms other than mine."
"Yes - yes, of course," North said.
"Fine then," Mist articulated with annoyance. "I'm staying right here."
"I won't be long," North promised, then walking between two seawing guards into the tunnel. Gelid followed. "It really works..." he muttered.
North progressed into the tunnel which led to the sleeping caves. In the large hollowed room were a bunch of seawings surrounding something.
"Let me through," North said and the seawings gave way to him and Gelid. Small dragonets from each different tribe except the seawings stood trembling in a group.
There was a larger skywing student that hissed at North and then poked by a spear from a seawing soldier. The skywing coiled back.
"Good to see. Where is Anemone?" North asked the soldiers.
"We had to chase her and her rainwing accomplice but she's currently restrained in the cavern," said the soldier closest to him.
"And the teachers?"
"Huddled into the lower caves. They won't be getting out."
"Well, save a detachment to monitor the mountains. We don't want any wandering dragons knowing what happened here," North ordered.
Gelid whirled out the way as North turned around and started walking back out of the cave and into the tunnel.
A seawing with light blue scales and peculiar yellow spots leapt out of the group of herded seawings. "Wait! There's one more thing, uh, sir."
North twisted to look at the seawing, clicking his teeth as he did. "And what would that be?"
"Along with Anemone, there was another seawing protecting her, not one of ours. We had to separate him in another chamber."
"Intriguing. Show him to me," North ordered.
The yellow spotted seawing guided them into the large cavern in the mountain. He said the chamber was on the other side so they had to fly over the long underground lake, pillars of stalagmites and odd flora that Gelid had never seen before. Above, there two glowing moons. One almost full and the other a thin silvery crescent.
Metal clangs echoed through the cave, resonating somewhere further down the river stream. Gelid guessed that was the enchanted chain used to prevent Anemone from using her magic. North was clever - getting rid of the one animus that could rival him.
They descended to a cave that licked the edge of the water and they trailed in with Gelid entering last and closest to the single exit. In the cave was a grey blue seawing that looked more on the skinny side than the others that surrounded him. A rope was tied around his snout, and other coils around his shoulders and talons, being pulled by five seawings in attempt to subdue him.
Already, the grey blue seawing had pink scales along where the ropes rubbed too hard.
"Down!" A seawing yanked on a long end of the rope around the subdued seawing's snout, forcing him to fall forward and onto his stomach.
"Keep him down!" Yelled another seawing, pulling a rope from one of his front talons.
"Blrrrghgfuff!" Said the subdued seawing. Though, the seawing probably meant to say something much ruder as he stared at North with the same stare a Gelid grew accustomed to from Mist.
North stepped forward to cut the rope around the seawing's snout. The seawing rocked his head from side to side until a soldier grabbed his horns to keep him still. North cut the rope and the seawing roared with fury, biting at North.
"When I get out of here, I'm going to slay all of you! You disloyal sacks of-" the seawing was interrupted.
"What's your name?" North asked.
"None of your business, white scales!" Responded the seawing. He hissed at the seawings pulling the ropes.
North waved a talon at Gelid, signalling for her to stay put while he began to circle the subdued seawing, carefully stepping over the ropes.
"You're a strong seawing, aren't you? Pity," North tsked. "A brave and loyal seawing such as yourself shouldn't be wasted. You'd die an unfaithful death."
"My loyalties lie with Princess Anemone! Not Auklet! If I die today then I'd die protecting her!" Argued the seawing.
"Why?"
"Because I do! Because she's the best and the rightful ruler of the seawings! Not that pretender!"
"Then you'll die. Is that what you want? You'd rather be stowed away with no one to remember who you were?" North leaned close to him, whispering into his ear. "Not with Queen Auklet you won't. Think of it. You'd be a strong and loyal commander in her army. You'll help shape the world under her. Your name will be etched in history. You'll be remembered forever." He stepped away.
The seawing considered North's words. "I would?"
"Yes. Forever."
"Not like Darkstalker. Not like Albatross..."
North shook his head. "Like the Dragons of Destiny."
"I - I..." The seawing shook his head defiantly, as if fighting a war in his mind.
Just do what he says, Gelid wanted to say but couldn't.
The seawing suddenly stamped a talon up, hoisting himself up. "No!" He roared. He clenched his teeth on the rope closest to him, breaking it and then bit the other, freeing his front talons.
"Stop him!" North yelled.
The seawing whirled, smashing his tail against the seawing soldiers and then the other side. They dropped his ropes and the seawing bolted for the exit, rushing past Gelid.
"Stop him at all costs!" North yelled at Gelid.
Gelid raced after the seawing, stopping with her talons in the stream to see where he went. She spotted him in air then lifted into the air after him. Strangely, he didn't fly up into the open sky but flew further down the stream where Gelid heard the metal clanging.
If he was going to free Anenome then Gelid had to stop him.
Gelid sped up to him, seeing the loose ropes around his ankles and she pulled them, throwing her wings forward for an abrupt stop.
The seawing yelped and dropped, with Gelid releasing the ropes and the blue dragon plonked into the river. She plunged into the water and pushed him down in the army of bubbles, feeling her hind claws dig into his tail.
Seizing his snout, the seawing struggled, creating waves and ripples in the stream. Gelid wrapped her talon around his throat and thought, Whatever North wants, I obey. He gets what he wants. Always. And she slashed his throat without a second thought, letting the water turn red.
Mist grazed the sky in silence.
Gelid thought the princess would've been more excited to see her father after all these years. Though, she was probably thinking of all the questions to ask him when they arrived at their destination. The Bay of a Thousand Scales.
It was clever making the Talons of Powers' hideout all the way out there, on the peninsula before the archipelago in the sea kingdom. Gelid always thought that they'd be in a giant cave system under the ground somewhere or in the mountains.
It explained Queen Auklet's part. With the queen of the seawings involved, that meant a literal army of dragons on their side and protection in her kingdom.
What surprised Gelid most of all was that they weren't spotted when travelling over the mountains. Or between the mud and sky border. Or even distantly by the town of Sanctuary.
She would've thought a group of more than fifty seawings, a bunch of coloured dragonets, and three icewings would be incredibly conspicuous. But now that they were over the ocean between the mainland and the islands, no dragon would be able to spot them.
Their destination hovered closer and closer, and Gelid was able to make out dragons walking along the beaches, in and out of palm huts, and flying around. They weren't just seawings either. There were a multitude of different dragons from almost all tribes. Except from the icewings of mudwings. Though, there did appear to be a pale and silt-coloured dragon under a palm tree.
Queen Auklet ordered the seawing soldiers away and for a small group to take the dragonets to a secure building to be watched over. "I hope this was worth it," she said to North before flying away
North landed on a platform in the water raised by columns. Mist landed beside him, turning her head at the new surroundings with Gelid behind her.
"Great, we're here. Now tell me everything," Mist said to North.
Gelid had to admit that she also eager to know where North had been, if not dead for the last four years.
North nodded and started walking down a bridge that connected the platform to the others and the sand of the beach. "Where do you want to start?"
"How about the part where you didn't die," Mist offered with a sharp tone.
"Ah, yes. I admit it wasn't my best idea but..." North explained what happened that night. It was his idea to go in hiding. He staged the sandwings and that skywing to be in the desert that exact night. He wanted it to look like he died and needed Mist to tell Blizzard about it. He planned for Mist to spot the note in the bracelets and to meet him at Rain's Merriment, which she never got, unfortunately.
"But I saw you dead, I saw your body in the desert," Mist said.
"Now that would be the clever use of animus magic," North answered.
"That you never told me about. How could you not tell me? I could've been born an animus with no idea how," Mist said coldly.
"You wouldn't be, I wasn't born an animus. Icewings haven't had an animus in centuries," North sounded exactly like Blizzard at that point. If not born, then how?
"So you just spontaneously transformed into one. Terrific."
North halted at an intersection on the platform. "No, no. I just - I...I was in the rainforest. When Glory was queen, she asked me to inspect the prisons, in case there were any weak points, any way the prison structure to improve. I was walking past the cells when - hmm, what was his name? Shapeshifter. The Shapeshifter gave me a note. A scrap of paper," North recounted.
"The Shapeshifter gave you it? So the most dangerous rainwing in history just gave you a scrap of paper before he killed himself?" Mist asked.
"It was a piece of Darkstalker's scroll," North said simply, meeting Mist surprised face. "I instantly knew what it was so I enchanted myself to be an animus. I tested it and those were the first things I ever made." He pointed at the copper bracelets around Mist's wrists.
Mist rolled her talons around, inspecting the bracelets for the hundredth time. "That explains that..." she muttered. "And you never told me about it."
"I did! Or at least, I tried to tell you," North said.
"Oh so now it's my fault I never found out. Splendid." Mist rolled her eyes.
"No, no, I never said that. Things happen," North defended. "I'm here telling you now is what matters."
"And all this time I blamed Blizzard for your death."
"You did?"
Mist explained what happened to her, including winding up in a prison in the desert. She explained the attack on the celebrations and what happened after.
"So Queen Auklet was right about that. I mean - I knew you were brilliant but this tops it," North smiled.
Mist didn't repay the smile but mumbled to herself. "You could've enchanted something to find me, instead of waiting so long."
"I didn't think of it. I don't know how far my magic goes."
"Animus dragons can do anything," Mist spited.
"I didn't know that," North said, thinking. "Do you want to be an animus?" He offered.
"Absolutely not," Mist answered, turning away.
How could Mist turn down that offer? Gelid imagined all the things she'd do if she was an animus.
North looked as if he wanted to ask why but didn't. They continued down steps to the flat top of a beach. The baked sand was intertwined with leaves and shells, making sure their feet wouldn't sink. They passed the mudwing that sat under the palm tree that Gelid spotted earlier. It was the mudwing princess, Willow. What was she doing there? Was she in the Talons of Power too?
Mist waited until they were a distance from Willow before asking. "What's she doing here?" She asked North.
"Hmm?" North glanced at Willow for a moment. "Oh, that one. Poor mudwing princess. Her older sister challenged Queen Ibis for the throne but lost and died. The little princess watched everything. She came to us offering her army in exchange for killing Ibis. Since she's the oldest daughter currently, she'd inherit the throne."
That seemed to leave Mist content.
North talked about the base and where everything was. On an island closest to the peninsula was a floating prison. Under the sea was a seawing base where seawing soldiers could accommodate without feeling too far from their ocean palace.
They walked into a shadow of a grey building made of stone and wood. Mist questioned it.
"That's the debate hall. That's where all the decisions are made," North answered.
"Hmm. Queen Auklet said that she's the one in charge. Do you do everything she says?" Mist asked.
"No, there's no one dragon in charge. The highest-ranking dragons are the ones that made a plea and the others vote on it. Like myself. I'm important so I have a say in decisions," North said. "But occasionally Auklet has an idea she likes to express and everyone listens, just they would for me."
"Is there a Conveyance mirror in there?"
North hesitated. "I can tell you that later but for now." He carefully clasped her talon. "Join me, Mist. Join me here where we can shape the world. Save it."
Mist grumbled something. "Save from what, exactly?"
"Inconsiderate dragons. Dragons like your aunt. Dragons like Fuchsia that only care about their throne."
"What do you mean my aunt?"
"You deserve the throne, Mist. You'd be a perfect queen."
Mist snatched her talon away. "I don't want the throne!" She almost hissed at him and then turned away to grimace at the ocean.
"Maybe not now but." He turned her snout towards him, even though her eyes pinned at the sand to avoid him. "You could be. I know that you don't want it but you deserve it. You could lead our tribe to prosperity, Mist. My daughter, look at me."
Mist was reluctant but turned her eyes at him, shaking her head to make him let go.
"I know you. You have brilliant leadership. You have the qualities of a true icewing queen," North said to her.
"Even though I'm half rainwing," Mist muttered.
"Just think about it. Do me that favour."
"Fine! I will think about it. Joining. Not becoming queen. I can't think of anything worse," Mist said.
North exhaled heavily. "I suppose..."
"Now, I'm tired. Where can I sleep?"
"Sleeping rooms are over here."
North directed her a quiet hut that floated above the sea water on the other side of the peninsula, connected by a single bridge. Mist went inside when North pulled Gelid away.
"I'm surprised this still works," North said, looking at the enchanted bracelet. "I guess animus magic can really do anything. Now, listen up. You're going to follow my daughter around wherever she goes. Remember everything she says and does. Do not talk to her. If she needs anything, come to me. And do not let her leave this place. Understood?" He instructed Gelid.
Gelid nodded.
She'd do this for him. She was completely loyal to Prince North and did whatever he asked of her. This was her destiny. This was what she always wanted: to serve a higher power. To help lead the continent to a new age where the Talons of Power ruled over all.
She was going to save the world.
