Fire and Ice

Blister's eyes narrowed as she hovered in the sky, scanning the battlefield. Minute figures thrashed below, tiny dots of tan and white pouncing on red and orange as the two armies clashed. Roars and bellows reached her, punctuated by the ear-piercing screech of claws on scales. Once they'd shaken off their surprise, Icicle's troops had met Ruby's in the sky, holding back the Skywing advance until Blister could get her own troops north.

She smiled. Their superior numbers had been enough to force the Skywings to the ground, where they lost their aerial advantage. Their massive wings, which had given them the benefit of speed in the sky, now served to hinder them as they fought the smaller, more nimble Sandwings and Icewings. Already Skywing corpses outnumbered those of Blister's forces, and with every passing second more of Ruby's soldiers fell.

An idiotic move on Ruby's part, to attempt such a reckless charge against her front. And despite their mounting losses, the Skywings refused to retreat. Blister cocked her head. What was driving them to fight this losing battle?

Perhaps I gave Ruby more credit than she deserved, she thought. Scarlet's daughter has never been the best of tacticians.

Blister turned as wingbeats approached from behind. Speak of the dragon, and here she comes. Seems she's brought company.

She swung back to meet up with Scarlet, who was followed by General Sahara and Princess Icicle. Together the four dragons flew in line, circling above the battlefield below.

"General," said Blister. "How goes the battle?"

Sahara dipped her head. "Very well, My Queen. We've countered Ruby's offensive and pulled her troops to the ground. We've pushed down the western flank and are wrapping around to trap the Skywings from behind."

"My Icewings are holding fast," said Icicle, showing her stark white teeth in a smug grin. "I sent my Frostguard forward, and they made short work of Ruby's dragons. This battle will be over within the hour."

Blister nodded, contemplating their words. "And you, Scarlet? What do you think?"

The former Skywing queen turned her disfigured face toward Blister. Scarlet's snout distorted into a scowl.

"I lost the rest of my rebels in this attack. Either they're dead, or they've fled—I may have even seen some surrender to Ruby's soldiers." She hacked and spat a glob of spit to the side. "Disgusting. I can't trust any Skywings these days."

"Rest assured, Scarlet. We will win this battle."

Scarlet sniffed. "You'd better. We've had few enough victories these past—"

"Your Majesty!"

All four dragons whipped around as three beleaguered Sandwings came rushing up to them. They were covered in mud, scratches crisscrossing their scales.

The one in the front pulled to a stop, gasping for breath, before shouting, "Seawings! To the south!"

"What?" Blister's jaw fell open.

The Sandwing nodded, almost falling out of the sky in his haste to explain.

"The eastern front. Overrun. Seawings, came out of nowhere. Lieutenant Scarab, all the rest, dead."

"How many?"

To that, the Sandwing only shook his head, panic in his eyes.

Sahara swore loudly. "I knew it. This attack was sloppy even by Ruby's standards; I thought something stank about it. It was a diversion all along."

Blister drilled Sahara with a furious glare. "I thought you said Coral was staying out of this war. How in the world did we not see an entire Seawing army creeping up on us?"

Sahara shook her head. "I've been sending scouts to comb the bay for Seawings. We never got anything. No sightings, no tracks, nothing. My queen, I am as stunned as you are at this turn of events."

"Ha!" shouted Icicle. "Seems like someone isn't doing her job properly."

"And what would you have done, princess?" growled Sahara.

"I would have struck out against the Skywings long ago and driven them out. Then, I'd have swooped down, cornered Moorhen, and ended this miserable war quickly. None of this siege nonsense, it's boring!" Icicle snapped at the air, punctuating her statement.

"And how would you have done that? Your excursions into the Claws have brought nothing but losses. Do you even know the first thing about warfare, princess?"

The Icewing's eyes narrowed to barely visible slits. "How dare you imply—"

"Enough." Blister silenced their dispute before it could get out of hand. "None of this is helping. You there." She pointed at the scout who had brought them the bad news. "How long before the Seawings catch us?"

The Sandwing looked distant for a moment, before replying, "I'm not sure, Your Majesty. An hour? Last I saw, they were surrounding the Nightwing camp. I'm afraid they're lost, too."

The losses were compounding each other. Blister fought the urge to scream. "And Fierceteeth? Where is she?"

"I'm sorry. I don't know."

A dreadful silence fell between them. Sahara caught Blister's gaze.

"My queen. What is your command?"

Blister closed her eyes. Emotions boiled beneath her scales. Anger, both at the dragonets for putting her through this, and at the inept dragons under her command. Frustration at herself, for falling for such a rudimentary tactic. Regret, for delaying the siege for this long. And there, down at the bottom, beneath it all…

Fear. For the first time in the war, Blister feared defeat.

She snapped her eyes open.

"An hour is all we need."

Sahara cocked her head. "My queen?"

"Messenger," she said to the Sandwing, "you're dismissed. Leave us."

As the three messengers fell away, Blister turned to Sahara and Icicle. "Tell the soldiers to keep pushing forward. Rush the Skywings; we have the advantage, we need to press it right now. I want Ruby's forces routed before the Seawings arrive."

Sahara balked. "You'd leave our rear open?"

"No, general. I intend to defeat one foe before turning around to face the other. I will not let our armies get sandwiched."

"And the Skywings?" said Icicle. "Ruby's a coward. She'll surrender to spare the lives of her dragons rather than fight it out to the end. What do we do about her troops?"

Blister looked over at Scarlet, who met her gaze with menacing certainty. Subtly, Scarlet nodded.

"We slaughter them all," said Blister.

They covered ground swiftly, pushing south and west through the Mud Kingdom, reclaiming territory that had been lost for months behind enemy lines. The Seawings bellowed their cries of victory as the Sandwings fled into the distance, hightailing it to the shadows of the rainforest to evade Coral's unstoppable juggernaut. They quickly passed outposts, then the main body of the Sandwing camp, now abandoned.

"Take what you can for now," yelled Tsunami from the front of the formation. "But don't destroy anything yet. We can still use their supplies. Get to it! We need to move on and reinforce Ruby as soon as possible."

Peril hung back, circling above as the Seawings rummaged through the camp, pulling out weapons and armor and checking the tents and huts for any stragglers. Clay and the others had gone on ahead to help the Seawings, but she knew she'd only get in the way. Unless Tsunami changed her mind and wanted the camp burnt to the ground, there was little she could do.

A commotion erupted below—dark shapes hissed as the Seawings surrounded them. Peril grimaced. Nightwings. Seems they'd been left behind for a second time.

She swung about to head over and listen in on what was going on. A large gathering of Nightwings huddled within a ring of Seawing soldiers. Tsunami and Clay were down on the ground, speaking to one Nightwing who stood at the head of the group, a smaller dragonet by his side.

"Where is she? Where's Fierceteeth?" Peril heard Tsunami say.

"Gone," came the reply. "Ran with most of the warriors, leaving the rest of us behind. She's probably hiding in the rainforest with the other Sandwings."

"And you didn't go with your daughter?"

"No. She's thrown her lot in with Blister. All her promises of Nightwing freedom and solidarity—they were all lies. She's handled this tribe poorly, and I'm glad that she's gone now."

The dragonet said something, and the Nightwing knelt to listen. Then he stood a bit taller.

"Moonwatcher is right. We owe nothing to Blister anymore. We'll join you. Just try not to leave us behind again."

Tsunami acknowledged the Nightwing and directed some of her troops to lead the tribe back to camp. Soon the entire tribe had take flight, the sky swarming with black and indigo wings. Peril saw that most of the Nightwings still looked scraggly and underfed, their scales dull and dirty.

"Poor Nightwings," she said as Tsunami and Clay joined her in the air. "They're always getting the short end of the stick."

"Here's hoping things change," said Clay. "I think we can finally protect them properly now."

Peril shot Clay a skeptical glance. "No more midnight escapes from the rainforest, then?"

"Nope," said Tsunami, chuckling. "Let's gather the troops. We've spent long enough here—"

"General Tsunami, a messenger has arrived!"

The three of them turned to see a Skywing escorted by a duo of guards. Wounds and open cuts scored the Skywing's body, and he shuddered as he pulled to a halt.

"Princess, Queen Ruby needs your help. Blister's hammering us, we won't last long."

Tsunami glanced over at the flights of Seawings still on the ground, sorting through the paraphernalia of the camp. "We'll be there as soon as we can. I'm getting my troops—"

"Princess, it can't wait! Ruby's on the verge of surrender."

Tsunami's head whipped around. "What? Queen Ruby said she could hold the north until we got there."

The Skywing's gaze fell. "I-I'm sorry…but…the Frostguard…"

Tsunami growled. "That explains everything."

She roared for attention, and all the Seawings turned to their princess.

"Up, into the sky now! Flight leaders, gather your flights and head north. Ruby needs reinforcements immediately!"

As the Seawings scrambled to their positions, Tsunami turned to Clay and Peril.

"Look. It's going to take some time for my troops to get organized and head up north. I don't know how long it will take. Half an hour, at least, to get the main body up there. If I send you two with a vanguard of Seawings, you should arrive in time to help. You think you can hold Blister long enough for the rest of us to arrive?"

Clay and Peril looked at each other. In Clay's eyes Peril saw fear, yet determination. He would go, despite the danger it would put him and his troop in. He would go, even if he didn't wish to hurt dragons any more than she did. He would go, if it meant winning a victory and protecting his friends from further harm.

And if he went, she was going with him.

"We'll do it," said Peril.

Tsunami nodded. "No time to waste. I'll send a flight to escort you. Go."

Side by side, Clay and Peril turned to head north.

"Peril!"

Peril pulled up short and, hovering in midair, glanced back at Tsunami. Gratitude shone clearly in the Seawing's expression.

"Thank you. For everything."

Unbidden, a smile touched Peril's snout. She nodded once, before pumping her wings to catch up to Clay.

The sight that lay before Peril made her heart plummet.

The battlefield came into view as she, Clay, and their escort surmounted a rise in the terrain. The smell was what hit her first—the scents of blood and fear intermingling in the air, mixed with the putrid scent of decaying flesh. The echoes of war reached her next, snarling and shrieking, dragons trapped in the feral throes of bloodlust mercilessly tearing each other to shreds. Then came the field of bodies: red and tan and white, stretching on and on into the distance. Most were still, while some still crawled feebly, trying to find fallen comrades or pull themselves to safety.

Peril felt her gorge rise. The fallen consisted overwhelmingly of Skywings.

"There!" shouted Reed, flying alongside Clay. "Ruby's backed up against the slope of that mountain."

Perched up the side of a short mountain was a lone group of Skywings—barely two flights worth of dragons, hemmed in by a massive horde of Sandwings and Icewings. The Skywings stood in a semicircle facing outwards, alternately clawing and breathing flames at the foes that came at them from below and above. Peril spied Ruby at the front, scales slick with blood, posture weak and haggard. General Ibex stood protectively in front of her, though he didn't look much better.

Peril scanned the chaos for any sign of Blister, Icicle, or Scarlet, but couldn't find any of them. Heat festered within her. Those cowards…

"Clay," said Reed, voice weak. "There are so many. What do we do?"

Her heart thrummed in her chest, blood pounding in her ears. These Skywings…she shouldn't have pitied them. Why would she, when she'd been shunned and rejected by these very dragons her entire life? They'd spat at her, isolated her, branded her a monster. They applauded her only in the arena, where she took innocent lives for their amusement. Now they were getting their due. Truly, she owed them nothing.

So why did her heart clench at seeing them beaten, bloody, and crushed beneath Blister's claw?

As her gaze fell on the panicked, fear-stricken faces of the last remaining Skywings, she knew her answer.

No dragon on the face of Pyrrhia deserved to die like this. Like cows herded to slaughter.

"Stay back," she growled, flaring her wings and lunging forward.

She blocked out Clay's wild protests, speeding away from him, her large wings carrying her swiftly to battle. As she neared the line she heard Ruby wail.

"Enough! I submit!"

The battle halted momentarily as Ruby stumbled out onto a rock outcropping jutting from the slope. She gasped, one wing skewed, a hind leg limping.

"I surrender. My dragons can fight no longer."

A figure detached from the throng and landed in front of Ruby. It was Princess Icicle.

The Icewing sauntered up to Ruby, her claws clacking sharply against the shale of the outcropping. Ruby bowed her head until it nearly touched the rock, as if she were no more than a lowly servant bowing to royalty.

"Please. Spare us."

Icicle wrapped a serrated claw around Ruby's muzzle and yanked her up to eye level. Ruby stiffened, yet remained silent.

"After all you've done to my Icewings, you ask for surrender? You insult me."

She shoved Ruby into the ground.

"Pyrrhia has no room for the weak and traitorous. It belongs to the strong and loyal."

The heat within Peril reached an unbearable level. Never, in all her years of fighting in the arena, had she felt this truly enraged. No matter where she went, it was always the strong that picked on the weak, the predators that hunted the prey. Red encroached on her vision as she streamlined her body into a teardrop and shot forward toward Icicle.

Peril had always been the strong one, the predator hunting the weak. She had always hated herself for who she was.

Now was her time to redeem herself.

Peril's world shrunk to Ruby and Icicle, to her wings and body as they shot through the air. Shouts and cries of alarm faded into oblivion as she narrowed her eyes.

Icicle reared back and opened her maw, mist forming in her throat, the swirling mix of tiny icicles building up to a ball of glowing white between her jaws. She bent down, her muzzle a talon's length away from Ruby, who struggled feebly in Icicle's iron grip.

"Icicle!"

The Icewing's head shot up right as Peril tucked her head in and bowled full speed into her, hurling them off the outcropping and down the side of the mountain. Earth and sky tumbled end over end as Peril grabbed hold of Icicle, pulling herself flush against her icy body. Icicle screamed in pain, and thrashed mindlessly in Peril's steel grip. Scales screeched against rock, sparks flew as Peril and Icicle rolled to a stop along an open stretch of ground.

Peril landed on top of Icicle, who continued shrieking wordlessly as her pristine white scales turned a scorched black where they made contact with Peril's body. Planting her rear legs on Icicle's stomach and her front claws on Icicle's chest, Peril brought her face even with Icicle's and gazed into the Icewing's wide, pale eyes.

"I am Peril, champion of those you call weak. Know my name, and be silenced."

She reared back and jammed her claws into Icicle's throat. Icicle's cries cut off instantly into a stunted choking as she twitched under Peril.

Blood roared in her ears. A part of her pleaded for mercy.

She smothered that part of herself.

It could have been a second or a year, but finally Icicle's body stilled, smoke rising from blackened scales. Peril let out a shuddering breath as she took in the princess's traumatic expression. Slowly, she removed her claws from Icicle's body and gingerly stepped away.

She deserved it, she thought. Icicle was a cruel dragon. She's killed many innocent dragons already, and she would have killed Ruby if I hadn't intervened.

She gazed down at her claws, tinged with soot from Icicle's burnt scales.

Had she taken a step forward—or two steps backwards?

But she had no time to dwell on her inner conflicts. Out of nowhere four massive Icewings fell around her, each one of them wearing a strange half-helm that covered their eyes and snout, but left their muzzles open. Peril tensed, entering her battle stance, as she swung around, eyeing each of her opponents.

Frostguard. The realization felt like a spear of ice had been rammed down her spine.

"The princess!" One of the guards pointed a claw at Icicle's mangled body. "The Skywing's murdered the princess!"

All four of them growled, and began advancing on Peril. Her fighting instincts kicked in, and Peril launched herself at the guard in front, latching her burning claws to his helm in an effort to reach his vulnerable scales underneath. The helm was ice-cold, and barely thawed beneath her talons. Peril scrabbled for purchase and hung on.

The guard roared and flung his head, throwing Peril off and slamming her into the ground. Peril struggled to her claws only to see a massive ball of frostbreath rushing toward her. She braced for impact.

The breath slammed into her with the force of a blizzard. Peril had fought Icewings before in Scarlet's arena, and any time they'd tried to use their frostbreath on her it had only numbed her for a few minutes. So it was quite a shock when Peril felt herself buckle beneath the force of the guard's frostbreath, her muscles straining from the shock of the blast.

For the first time in her life, Peril felt truly cold.

She struggled to stand, the ice sizzling as it hit her scales, creating a billowing plume of steam that enveloped her and the Frostguard. Crystals formed along her body and encased her muzzle; Peril felt her body shaking, and discovered she was shivering.

What an odd feeling, she thought hysterically, sudden fear threatening to swamp her. So this is what being cold feels like.

Vaguely she heard the guards shouting, likely stunned to see her survive one of their deadly blasts. She groaned and breathed a weak jet of fire through the steam. She had to warm up, before they could—

Peril was knocked to the ground as another gale of ice struck her, this time from her left. She snarled and attempted to face her aggressor, only to blind herself in the storm of ice and snow. Great moons, it hurt. Her body was aching now from the cold, as if a thousand dragons had stabbed their claws into her body, particularly her extremities.

"Use your frostbreath! The firescales can't resist our breath for long." The heavy mist muted the order, as if Peril had snow caked in her ears. Huh. Maybe she did; Peril shook herself roughly, and a wave of ice crystals showered the air.

"Clay?" Her voice was barely a whisper, so hard was it to speak through her chattering teeth. "C-Clay? Where are y-you?"

Dark shapes loomed in the mist. More frostbreath descended on her from all directions. Pathetically, Peril curled herself into a ball, trying to use her wings to shield herself from the cruel tempest around her.

"C-Clay…help m-me…"

She couldn't feel anything anymore, not her limbs, not even her heartbeat. All she felt, all she knew, was the cold.

"…h-h-help…"

Roars. Shouts. Suddenly the whirlwind around her vanished. Shadows passed overhead, demons swooping in to end her miserable existence. Peril peeked over her wing. The shadows were falling on the Frostguard, tearing at them like tiny insects ripping apart a huge giant. One fell, then another. More shadows swooped overhead as the mist began to dissipate.

Peril blinked blearily. She felt so tired, so weak, a newly hatched dragonet mewling for its mother.

A blurry brown shape landed and rushed to her side. His voice was muffled and low.

"Peril? What happened?"

She gazed up at the dragon. It was Clay, the sun silhouetting him like an angel. Peril felt warm, knowing he was here to rescue her.

"…c…c…"

"Reed! Get the healers NOW! Peril, stay with me. No, don't close your eyes. Keep looking at me, stay awake. Oh moons, please no, please…"

Peril didn't understand. Why was Clay so worried? She felt positively cozy now. In fact, she felt like taking a short nap, now that Clay was here to keep watch over her.

"…Peril…stay…"

Her eyelids fluttered shut, open, shut. She felt someone shaking her, and lazily reached up to brush it off.

"…p…n…"

Darkness swallowed her.

A/N: Yeah...one chapter a day definitely isn't working for me. I mean, I could push myself to do it, but I feel like my writing quality would drop a lot if I did. I think I need some time to mull over what I want each chapter to be, what scenes I need to create and such. I don't know, I feel guilty for having so many hiatuses in the history of me writing this story, so I wanted to make up for it a bit this spring break. Don't get me wrong, I accomplished a lot this break - at least, more than I did over winter break. Still, I can't help but wonder if I could have gotten a bit more done. Oh well.

Some of you were anticipating something going wrong. After all, it seemed like the dragonets were just steamrolling Blister, weren't they? Yeah, well, Blister always has a trick up her sleeve. Of course, Blister wasn't anticipating Peril coming in and throwing a wrench into things. Ooh boy, there's gonna be a lot of fallout from this chapter, for both sides. Is Peril going to make it? Is she even still alive? Sorry, you'll have to wait until next chapter to find out.

Speaking of next chapter...this story's actually coming to its end pretty soon. In terms of chapters, I'd estimate maybe four to five more chapters to go until the end. Shocking, isn't it? I must admit I never thought I would get this far when I began writing this last May. To see myself actually approaching the finish line is nothing short of spectacular. And you guys were there every step of the way! So thank you again for the umpteenth time for following along on this crazy adventure of mine.

~SpicyDog99