The wind blew Pheda's long hair back from her neck, and the soft whoosh of Honest's wings was familiar, and therefore comforting. Especially after the General. . . incident. . . a few days before. You'll find him, she promised herself. You'll defeat him. No child will ever end up like Everlynh. No dragon will ever end up like Starflinger. Ever.
She shook her head, trying to clear her mind of her sad thoughts.
Honest rolled her eyes back to look at her. 'Hey. You okay?'
Yeah, just. . .
'Bereaved? Me too.'
It's not just that, Honest. It's my fault Everlynh was there in the first place, and she hadn't been there, Star wouldn't have either. If I'd listened to Everlynh, if I had agreed to let her come on a mission in the future, or if I had agreed to at least look for her parents - well, I guess it turns out I already was, but still - then she would have been content, and we wouldn't be in this mess.
'We wouldn't have found the General, though.'
And Ever and Star wouldn't have been killed by him. Seriously, Hon, can you just. . . I don't really want to talk right now, okay?
'Okay.' Honest looked ahead again, and beat her wings a couple of times before slowing down into a glide.
Pheda recalled the mission Zephyr had presented to her. I have to find the Berkians' allies. I have to find out if they're still on our side. It's crucial that we know, and now.
When she and Honest had left after two full days of preparations, everyone on New Berk, along with hundreds of dragons of the Hidden World, including the Light Fury Honest had befriended, Moon Raider, had been there to see them off. Even Nuffink had come, the healer having begrudgingly allowed him out of her hut.
That had been the day before. Pheda and Honest had been stopping when they could for breaks no longer than an hour, then flying again in chunks that were as long as five hours, sometimes even six.
Pheda had studied map after map before leaving New Berk, and had concluded that, flying at the pace they had been since leaving, they would reach Old Berk within another day or so.
Do you really think this will work? she asked Honest.
0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0
Starflinger's eyes flashed open, and she was on her feet in an instant. Icy stone and snow packed so hard that it might as well be solid rock was beneath her feet, and still more snow and ice could be seen outside the cave she was in.
"Calm down," snarled a voice, unmistakably a Night Fury's. "Easy there."
"Who. . . who are you? Where are you?" Starflinger asked, hating the way her voice squeaked and cracked.
"Over here," said the voice.
Starflinger whipped around, looking at the back of the cave, and saw a black form moving from the shadows. It was a Night Fury, with silver talons and silver speckles on its wings, and eyes that were a bright red, brighter even than Spirit's. Keeping close to its side was a Night Light, about half its size. The Night Light, though, looked different from any other that Star had ever seen. Its body was mainly white, but layers of brown, nearly transparent atop the white scales, swept across its underbelly in smooth arcs, covering the top of its head and its tail fins, and large spots of dark brown - or perhaps a non-transparent version of the original brown - dotted its back, head, and legs. Its eyes were a shimmering golden color. It stared at Starflinger with undisguised curiosity and more than a little fear.
"Ummm, Fyre? Who is she?" it asked, pressing tighter against the strange Night Fury's side.
"I don't know," he - Fyre? - answered, watching Star warily. "I found her in the middle of the blizzard a few days ago. I brought her to the cave, then decided to move you here as well earlier today."
Starflinger lifted her head, doing her best to look like a Queen of Dragons - regal, and unafraid. "My name is Starflinger."
The little Night Light seemed to relax a little at the mention of a name. "I'm Speckle, and he's Blackfyre."
She nodded at the Night Fury.
Blackfyre stepped away from Speckle, advancing toward Star with slow steps, and a threatening posture. "Tell me, Starflinger, what are you doing here, on my island?"
He pronounced her name as though he was certain that it was fake. "I haven't seen another dragon on this hunk of snow-covered rock besides Speckle for as long as I can remember, and yet you don't seem terribly astonished to see us. Who are you really, and where do you hail from?"
Starflinger started to snarl at him, to warn him to back off, then remembered that she was in his territory, and from his rough-and-tumble look, it was easy to see that he hadn't been coddled by dozens of dragons the way she had. He'd had to survive on his own, catch his own food, find ways to keep himself warm, and care for a Shortwing Night Light. "I am a Night Fury," she began, "and one of the last two females of the species. My name truly is Starflinger, and I hail from the Hidden World."
"I have heard of no such place," Blackfyre snarled.
"Oh get real, Fyre," said Speckle, moving forward to stand beside him. "You haven't been anywhere, or heard of anything. The only thing you and I know is this forever-freezing island."