Storm Season

Chapter Fifteen

Monsoon had to close his eyes. He couldn't tell which was worse: the sight, or the smell. He felt sick, his insides twisting into knots. He felt Parrot's side heave as she vomited over the edge, which did not help his own situation. He gripped Parrot's shoulders firmly in his talons and turned her away from the gruesome sight. He pushed her into a sitting position, sitting down beside her himself and wrapping his wings around her, pressing her face into his chest. From where he sat, he could hear Alpine cursing into the ravine, while Boa's mind cursed at the moons. For a long time, Monsoon didn't move. He held Parrot close to him, trying to pass a strength he didn't feel into her scales. He lost track of time, eyes closed, snout buried in his wings. It was some time later when Alpine quietly interrupted his blank mind. She tapped him on the shoulder, sympathy in her eyes.

"From the looks of it, you two have never seen a dead dragon before," she said gently, not her usual sarcastic manner. He shook his head, still too shaken to speak. "I thought so. I did some… investigating and it turns out those dragons are all missing scales, and the scales around the ones that are missing are burned as well, so I think I found where the scales on the tree came from." Monsoon felt Parrot shudder under his wings.

"Why so many?" he managed to croak out at last, his voice catching in his throat. She shook her head, grief and confusion spread across her face.

"I don't know," she said, her voice wavering. "They were only missing one scale each. They killed a dragon for just one scale each. Then stuck it to a tree." Her face hardened, her emotions replaced by the mask of a scowl.

"We should leave," Parrot said into his chest, her voice muffled. "I don't want to be here anymore." She lifted her head, her eyes distant.

"For once, I agree with her," Alpine said with a small shrug.

"Where's Boa?" Monsoon asked, looking around.

"Right here," he said, materializing from the rocks. He slid closer, bumping into his shoulder. The four dragons lifted off together into the gathering darkness, their wing beats filling the empty air. Alpine took the lead, flying slowly and allowing Monsoon's mind to wander. He thought of all the things that brought him to where he was currently. In his mind, he replayed every event that he could remember. From slinking around in the woods by himself, finding just enough food to survive, to meeting Parrot for the first time, to discovering Moonbeam and Shadowhunter. Thinking back, he couldn't even remember exactly how old he was. He imagined that he was around nine years old, but he couldn't be sure. It always managed to surprise him when there was a piece of information that he'd never thought to try and remember. How am I supposed to remember what I can't even remember?

Without warning, Alpine dove to the ground, thumping down in a secluded thicket of trees where the ground sloped up into a natural overhang, sheltering them on one side. It was fully dark now, the three moons sliding across the sky, barely a sliver of their full sizes. Monsoon laid down on a pile of damp moss, groaning at the ache in his wings and soul. Parrot laid down next to him, resting her head on his shoulder and letting her tail flop over his. He took one of her talons in his, breathing deeply. He couldn't help but notice how Boa had not-so-subtly edged his way just a bit closer to Alpine every time he resettled himself. As he slipped into sleep, he subconsciously squeezed Parrot's talon more than he meant to.

The same darkness pressed around him as it had the night before. He stretched his wings in the pitch blackness, but this time, his wing brushed against something. The something ran along his wing, getting closer to his body. He shuddered, terrified of what could be lurking in the darkness. Saving him from whatever the something was, the blinding flash of purple light assaulted his eyes, just like last time. As it faded, he was standing at the base of the dilapidated belltower. Unlike last time, however, Parrot was standing next to him.

"By the moons!" she cried, leaping backwards, crashing into his side, her scales striped with bright green. "Where's the stupid monkey toed, sloth eyed, snail brain that brought me here!"

"Um, I'm right here," Monsoon said, stifling a laugh.

"WHAT?" she roared, whirling around. "I knew you weren't lying, but creepy dream world is your adventure, not mine!" She flared her wings, bright green veins pulsed along her golden orange scales as she spun in circles, taking in the scene.

"I didn't mean to," he protested, grinning at her.

"You're lucky that you're too cute to scar," she said, her panic seeming to fade.

"Oh, gross," Moonbeam laughed as she landed near them. "I haven't heard anyone talk like that in centuries." She grimaced, the weight of what she said sinking in.

"Who are you?" Parrot asked with wide eyed curiosity.

"Who are you?" Moonbeam asked with a trace of hostility.

"I'm Parrot, Monsoon's girlfriend," she said, which made him smile so much that it felt like his face was going to split in two while his heart beat wildly in his chest.

"Oh, I see," Moonbeam said. She gave Monsoon a quizzical look. "Apparently you can bring dragons in here, can you bring them back out, too…?" she trailed off.

"I have no idea," he said truthfully. Disappointment crossed her face, falling like a blanket over her scales.

"To answer your question, RainWing, my name is Moonbeam."

"Nice to meet you, Moonbeam," Parrot said, stepping towards her slightly. Moonbeam only nodded in response.

"I've told Parrot everything you've told me. Maybe she could help me with finding the bracelet. Did you figure out if destroying it would work or not?"

"It's possible that it would free us," she said slowly, "but it's also possible that it doesn't and traps us here for all of eternity." She looked down at her talons, worry filling her eyes.

"Shadowhunter said that you were dragonets when you first ended up here, right? You look like you're in your twenties now, so I'd assume that you would die at some point," Monsoon said absently, lost in thought about how time worked in this place.

"Comforting," Moonbeam said wryly, "only a millenia or so until we die, no big deal." This made Parrot giggle so hard that she had to lie down and cover her head with her wings until she could regain her composure. Moonbeam gave her an appraising look. Monsoon shook his head, embarrassed. It wasn't very often that he let himself slip and say whatever he was thinking like that.

"Oh, um, I didn't mean..." he trailed off, feeling awkward. He shifted his talons uneasily, absently shredding blades of grass between his claws.

"Anyway," Moonbeam said, changing the subject, "if you think that this RainWing can help you undo the spell on that moons blasted bracelet, be my guest to let her help. I never said that you were the only one that had to do anything about it." She looked at him over her shoulder as she turned to walk away.

"Hey, a quick question," Monsoon blurted, surprising himself. She stopped in her tracks, craning her neck to see him. "We found this really creepy tree today and I was wondering if there was anything like that in your time." To his left, Parrot went still as a statue, her eyes staring into the distance while her scales pulsed pale green.

"What do you mean 'a creepy tree?'" Moonbeam asked, irritation seeping into her voice.

"I mean it was a tree covered in charred dragon scales that had been hammered into place. Also, there were a few hundred dead SkyWings nearby." Moonbeam turned around slowly, keeping her eyes locked on his.

"The Cult Of the Trees," she said in a low, dangerous voice. "Yes, I know all the rumors. Long ago, long before my time, back when The Darkstalker had been defeated and his beloved Clearsight fled the continent, a cult was formed. But that's where it gets a little fuzzy. Some say that Clearsight made it to the lost continent, giving directions back to Pyrrhia to some unknown dragons. They say that it was those dragons that came back across the ocean and started the cult. While others say she got lost at sea, drowning in the ocean, meaning that it was one of our own tribes.

"Personally I believe that she did make it to the Lost Continent. However, no one knows for sure. If it's possible that Clearsight made it there, it is possible that they made it back." She closed her eyes, pressing one talon against her head.

"A wonderful ghost story," Shadowhunter said mockingly, descending from the rooftops of the square. "It would have been impossible for a lone dragon to cross an entire ocean, let alone to a continent that doesn't even exist. On top of that if you even believe that she attempted to flee, she would have been woefully underprepared for such a journey." he stalked around the three dragons, keeping his eyes away from Moonbeam's. "Why is there a RainWing here with our other 'guest' today?" he asked, malice dripping from every word. Monsoon tensed, his instincts screaming danger while his mind screamed fear and panic.

"That's Monsoon's girlfriend," Moonbeam said, seemingly unaware of the pure hatred that seethed under Shadowhunter's scales. Instead of acknowledging her, Shadowhunter sat down, tail curled over his back talons. Monsoon's muscles relaxed slightly, but he remained alert.

"A cult from the Lost Continent?" Monsoon asked as soon as he decided that Shadowhunter was no longer an immediate threat. "Why would they staple scales to trees?"

"They were believed to have been called LeafWings," Moonbeam said. "Much as IceWings abilities are linked to ice, and SeaWing abilities are linked to water, LeafWing abilities were supposedly linked to plants. There is a lot of mystery around the who and the why, but the how has been the same for two thousand years." Monsoon shuddered. Two thousand years worth of covering trees in scales for seemingly no reason. "They do it over almost fifteen years, taking only a few dragons a month of a specific tribe so that they don't cause any suspicion. It's quite horrifying, really." She sat back, looking at the two younger dragons, trying to gauge their reactions. Over Moonbeam's shoulder he could see the grey light of dawn creeping into the square.

"Before we get thrown out of here," he said quickly, "Do you think there are any LeafWings still in Pyrrhia?" he slid briskly over to Parrot, wrapping her in his wings and holding her close to himself while she answered.

"I have no idea," she said thoughtfully, "there were never any confirmed sightings, only rumors and speculation. It's not impossible I suppose."

"If you think that there are other continents with other dragons you're delusional," Shadowhunter mumbled at the ground. The familiar sliding feeling under his talons returned once again.

"Hold on," he whispered in Parrot's ear as the ground started to tilt. Moonbeam's snappy answer was cut short as the two dragons were lurched off the ground and thumped back into their own bodies. His eyes snapped open, the predawn light seeming to suck the color right out of the trees, leaving only a grey husk behind. Birds chirped in the distance, the only noticeable difference between here and the Place of No Escape. He sat up quickly, shaking Parrots shoulder. She blinked back at him.

"Was that real?" she whispered, her face a mask of confusion.

"I thought you said you believed me," he said teasingly.

"Of course I believe you, but that just doesn't feel like it's real. And what was up with that grumpy NightWing?"

"Shadowhunter? Yeah, I have no idea why he's so terrible. The only thing I can think of is that he's just a bitter old dragon." Monsoon stretched his wings and neck, peering over at Boa, who had managed to sidle almost up to Alpine's back. Monsoon shook his head, a faint smile spreading across his face.

"Hmm. There's a lot that we have to be on the lookout for now," she said in a more serious voice. "That bracelet, those rogue SkyWings and now a cult founded by dragons from a different continent."

"I don't know how to feel about all that. It seems too convenient almost."

"What do you mean?"

"For starters how the four hundred year old dragons in dream land know the history and all the rumors that we've never heard. On top of that, it's only now that we're trying to free these dragons that we found their signature on Pyrrhia. No, I just don't buy it, there's something else going on." He stood, making his way over to the two sleeping dragons. He shook Alpine's shoulder with his talon and she made a "Ugghf" sound before rolling over and opening her eyes. Boa was alert as soon as Monsoon touched his shoulder.

"Who's ready to meet some strange dragons?" Monsoon asked as soon as everyone was ready. He leaped into the air, the others trailing behind him.