AN: Hello everyone! I don't have much to say this time around, other than that the poll is still open on my profile. Also, if anyone was wondering how far along we are in the story, I'd say we're nearing the end of what would be Part 1 of a Wings of Fire book. I don't have a whole outline planned out, but I've been dividing the plot into roughly three sections in my head, and I'm still on the first one. That means there are plenty more chapters to come!

Anyways, I'll get on with the story now. Thanks for reading, and enjoy!

"It sounds like you had a very long day," Cornice observed.

"I did," Ozone sighed. "It was fun, but also really overwhelming. I don't thrive in busy places the way Jackal and the others do."

Cornice didn't respond, giving himself some time to think over everything Ozone had just told him. The SkyWing hadn't filtered any information out of his story, giving a detailed, step by step description of everything he had done in Possibility. While it was good to hear about other places besides the Ice Kingdom and the valley he'd grown tired of seeing outside this cave, it was hard to organize everything in his mind that way. Especially since Ozone kept accidentally leaving things out and adding them in later.

Ozone had already relayed this information to his commander, but apparently reporting it hadn't been enough to alleviate the worry pressing down on his shoulders. He'd been hesitant to talk about it at first, but it was clear to Cornice that something was bothering him. He'd prompted the SkyWing to tell him what was going on, and Ozone had eventually caved, spilling out a torrent of worried thoughts.

Along with the story, he'd confessed that he couldn't shake the feeling that there was something he'd forgotten when he'd conveyed the information to Claret.

Ozone toyed with the strap of the pouch he'd brought, which was now empty, but which had been full of berries he'd bought in Possibility. Cornice had only ever eaten meat and fish before, but he had to admit that the sugary sweetness of the fruit had not been unpleasant. He and Ozone had quickly finished off the food together.

"Tell me about the SandWings' group again," Cornice said, with a sigh.

Ozone twisted his claws together nervously at the faint hint of impatience that had crept into the IceWing's tone. "Sorry. I know I'm not the best at storytelling."

"It's fine," Cornice said, flicking his tail dismissively. "Just repeat that part."

Ozone hesitated, clearly trying to figure out what Cornice really meant by 'fine', before apparently deciding not to risk annoying the IceWing any further by making him wait—which was a wise choice, in Cornice's opinion.

"Jackal was being really mysterious about the whole thing, not telling me what it was about, cutting Barracuda off when she was about to mention it, and stuff like that," Ozone said. "He also tried to brush it off later by saying he thought it would bore me. He did eventually explain, but Sard thinks he was lying about memorializing the war."

"I agree with Sard," Cornice said.

"Why?" Ozone asked. "How can you tell he was lying?"

"It sounds like he changed tactics," Cornice pointed out. "You told me he said it would bore you, but let you forget about that once he told you about the 'purpose' of the group and instead told you couldn't join because you lived too far away."

"You're right," Ozone said uneasily.

"I think he doesn't want you to know what's really going on," the white dragon continued. "He probably wanted to recruit you for his group and then changed his mind once he got to know you better. I'm willing to guess that it's something shady."

"Why?" Ozone asked.

Three moons, this SkyWing really needed everything spelled out clearly for him. "Because I can't see any other reason why he would suddenly decide not to include you. I'm guessing he realized that you're dedicated to strictly following the rules."

Ozone tilted his head to one side. "You know, I think you're the only dragon I've heard say that in an approving tone."

"IceWings are typically good about following rules," Cornice said impatiently. "If there's a law, it obviously exists for a good reason. If you break the rules and something bad happens to you as a result, then you were asking for it." He tried not to think too hard about his father as he spoke. "But that's not important right now. Can we please focus on the task at talon? We can figure this out."

"We can?" Ozone asked, and then hurriedly switched tactics as Cornice gave him an exasperated look. "I mean, we can. But as curious as I am about what Jackal's group is actually about, I'm more worried about the Tribeless."

Cornice jumped and gave Ozone a startled look.

"Oh, did I not tell you that part?" The SkyWing's made an apologetic expression. "I was sure I did. I definitely told it to Claret, and I thought I told you, too."

"No, you certainly did not." Cornice tried to reassemble his composure. "I didn't realize the Tribeless were active among other tribes. I thought that rebel group existed exclusively in the Ice Kingdom."

"They're in the Ice Kingdom?" Ozone asked, looking surprised. "I figured they'd just started their group now, in Possibility. That's what Puddle—the MudWing who told me about the Tribeless—seemed to think, anyway."

Cornice shook his head. "No, they definitely started up a while back. I think it was about a year ago... a dragon named Tundra came by my house, looking for dragons to recruit. I didn't talk to him, but my older sister told me about him afterwards."

"You have a sister?" Ozone asked.

Cornice scowled, realizing his mistake too late. "Not important. The important thing is that IceWings started the Tribeless, not these Possibility dragons."

"That can't be right," Ozone said, shaking his head.

"Why not?"

"Because Puddle told me that they found a SandWing to lead them. Specifically, the dragonet of Famine and Queen Rain Shadow." Ozone eyes suddenly widened. "Oh, I think that's what I forgot to tell Claret!"

"For the love of the Great Ice Dragon, Ozone!" Cornice yelped, flaring his wings in exasperation. "That's the most important part! How could you forget that?"

Ozone twisted his claws together, leaning away from the IceWing's angry yelling as if afraid Cornice would hit him. "It was just a rumor, Puddle said. And I had a lot on my mind. I can't remember everything, okay?"

"Only useless details, apparently," Cornice muttered.

For a moment, both of them were silent.

Then Ozone asked, "Did that gesture hurt your wing?"

"… A little, yeah," Cornice admitted, glancing down at it. "But I think it's just sore from when I went out flying the other day."

"You went flying the other day?" Ozone asked, looking hurt.

Cornice frowned. "Yeah. I didn't go far—just to a nearby lake and back. I didn't damage my wing any further, and I wasn't caught, don't worry. I was extremely careful. I did see your Commander Spark fly by on patrol, though, or something like that."

Ozone blinked in surprise. "That's… not possible. Spark almost never leaves our base. The other soldiers-in-training and I do all the patrolling with Claret."

Cornice flicked his tail thoughtfully. "That'd odd. I figured it had to be him. The dragon was covered in scars, which I assumed meant he'd fought in the Great Pyrrhian War. He was even missing half a horn."

Ozone frowned. "What did he look like? I mean, what color were his scales?"

"Dark red," the IceWing told him, not sure why it mattered but deciding to humor his friend anyway. He felt kind of bad for yelling at Ozone; as exasperating as the other dragonet's forgetfulness could be, it wasn't something he could really control. "Darker than yours. And his wings were orange."

"Were his eyes murky yellow?"

"I think so," Cornice responded. "Why?"

"That's definitely not Spark," Ozone said slowly. "In fact, your description sounds exactly like a dragon I just met in Possibility. Rockslide, the SkyWing in Jackal's group. What would he be doing here, though?"

"I don't know," Cornice admitted. "But the dragon I saw was pretty distinctive-looking; I would definitely recognize him if I ever saw him again."

"Same with Rockslide," Ozone agreed.

"So, I think we can safely assume that it was Rockslide I saw by the lake," Cornice mused. "And he was very clearly looking around for something, which was why I thought he was Spark on patrol. That's interesting. I'll keep thinking about it and let you know if I come up with any ideas. For now, tell me more about the Tribeless."

"Well, their leader is a SandWing, apparently," Ozone said. "The secret dragonet of Famine and Rain Shadow, though I'm not sure why that matters."

Cornice narrowed his eyes. "Some dragons, even some IceWings, loved Famine. They thought he was stronger than our queen. They'd give anything to pretend that he's back from the dead, even if that means bowing down to his son or daughter."

"That's… alarming," said Ozone.

"I know." Cornice shrugged. "But that's just what charisma is like."

"What do you know about the Tribeless?" Ozone asked.

"Only what I was told," the white dragon answered, trying to remember. "They're discontent with the tribe system, especially the monarchy. They believe the continent should be ruled by a single leader, which would be a position voted on periodically by an elite nobility rather than won in battle. That leader wouldn't even need to be female."

"That doesn't sound entirely bad," Ozone said thoughtfully.

"I don't think you should be agreeing with rebels," Cornice said.

"But killing for leadership is an outdated practice," the SkyWing responded. "The Rainforest Kingdoms have been using a different system for centuries. And tribism has been an ongoing problem for just as long. Living as a single tribe might change that."

"That's not important now," Cornice said irritably. "The point is, that's what my sister told me. I also know they were founded at least a year ago, judging by when that Tundra dragon spoke to my sister. They were still only a small group back then, and I don't think they mentioned anything to her about a leader. The rumor you heard about Famine's dragonet could very well be true."

"That's what worries me," the SkyWing confessed. "I wish I had remembered to tell Claret about that. You're right, it is the most important part."

"If she speaks to your source of information, I'm sure that dragon will tell her the rumor," Cornice pointed out. "And if Claret doesn't find out all the information that was just given to you, then that means she must not be doing a proper job investigating."

Ozone considered that information. "Was that supposed to be comforting?"

"It was," said Cornice, feeling pleased for only a moment before the implications of the SkyWing's question sank in. "But if you needed to ask that, I'm going to guess it didn't come across right."

Ozone shook his head. "I appreciate the attempt, though."

"Hmph," Cornice huffed, feeling like his pride had been damaged. "You'd better. And in my defense, IceWings are inherently terrible at expressing sympathy, or any kind of emotion, really. That was the best I could do."

"Claret is leaving early tomorrow morning," Ozone said thoughtfully, ignoring the IceWing's moodiness. "Maybe I'll have time to tell her about the whole secret-dragonet-Tribeless-leader thing before she heads out."

"Is she going all by herself?" Cornice asked.

"No, she's taking a team with her to investigate all that shady stuff we uncovered in Possibility," Ozone explained. "Sard and I have to be left behind, since we could be recognized, Gale still has an infected wound, and Spark is staying to supervise us, but Ridge and Buzzard are free to go with Claret."

"And that's not too noticeable of a group, either," Cornice remarked.

"It works out," agreed Ozone.

"What are you going to do in the meantime?" asked the IceWing.

Ozone sighed. "Stay behind and guard our base, I guess. That mostly translates to having nothing to do except worry, though. And either subject myself to a one-sided conversation with Spark or try to keep Sard and Gale from ripping each other apart."

"Your life is a colossal mess," Cornice observed, not sure whether to be amused or exasperated by this overabundance of drama.

Ozone lowered his head. "I almost think it was better before I became a soldier. I didn't really have any friends, but I wasn't so overwhelmed all the time, either. I feel constantly indecisive about pretty much everything these days. It's hard to make any kind of decision without trusting my judgement, but it's hard to trust myself when it feels like I can't do anything right."

Why are you telling me this? Cornice wanted to ask, but the words died on his tongue. Ozone was opening up to him, and some clumsily confused part of him realized that a normal, non-IceWing dragon would comfort the SkyWing instead of pushing him away with sharp, judgmental questions.

"That's not true," he said. "You healed my wing. You did that right."

He wasn't sure if that was even close to the right thing to say. He felt helpless, and helplessness was such an un-IceWing feeling that Cornice almost laughed out loud. But it wasn't funny, so he bit his tongue.

"Thanks," said Ozone, glancing at him with an expression that was half wry, half genuinely amused. "That means a lot, Cornice."

"Laughing at my awkward attempts to offer support?" the IceWing sniffed, when in reality he felt nearly as mushy on the inside as the berries Ozone had brought him. "That's fine. I won't bother trying next time you get all emotional on me."

"No, it was nice," the red-and-gold dragon said earnestly.

"Pfft," was Cornice's only response. But his words had been an empty threat, and both of them knew it. "You'd best get going so you can tell Claret about the Tribeless's supposed leader. Don't waste your time on small talk with me."

Ozone's face became serious. "You're right. Thanks, Cornice." With that, he turned to fly away, but something made Cornice reach out a talon to stop him.

"What is it?" the SkyWing asked.

Cornice opened his mouth and then closed it again. "Be careful."

Ozone searched his gaze for a moment but didn't ask what Cornice had meant by that. He only nodded solemnly. "I will."