Chapter 14: Day 16

"Want some?"

Prince Turtle held up his tiny talonful of anchovies to her.

"It's alright. I had my breakfast." Rainbow said while folding his seaweed blanket.

Reassured. He glopped down the last of fishes and laid there filled with satisfaction.

Rainbow had never felt so relief since the day she assigned to care duty. The little prince had not only thoroughly regained his appetite; his depressive and anxious had become shadows of his past self. As if the punishment set two weeks ago had never happened. But of course, the 'isolation' had always been in effect. Maybe he was getting used to it or maybe it was her. But she almost sure that whatever effect that 'Talons of Power' ceremony had on him. But judging by his mood, he probably had dismissed it as something in the past.

"Alright. Let's go." He leapt up from his spot. "There are plenty things to do today. All around the palace. We are going to the corals, the library, and the bubbles vents."

"Okay. Prince Turtle. But first let me tidy the room and clean up the plates. Then, we'll do anything you want." She said.

They cleaned the room together. Even though she insisted that she could do it alone. He still proceed to help her. Suppose he intended to speed things up so that they would have more time later on. It was nonetheless a helpful one. After she returned from cleaning up the breakfast, he dragged her out of the room by the talon.

"Come on. We haven't got all day." He said. "You said you had never went around the Summer Palace, have you? Now is the chance."

Rainbow couldn't suppress the grin on her face. Was this the same dragonet she first met in the writing room? The day before, he was a nerve-wreck. Now, so eager and alive. He even offered himself as a tour guide to her around the palace.

Soon, she found herself swam away from the entrance of Summer Palace into the sea. In consideration of the palace's secrecy, there were tons of kelps grew around the palace, hiding its entrance to all those who were unwelcome. Prince Turtle, with his small body, was able to wiggle past them with ease while she had to claw them away to follow him.

One of kelps caught her tail as she tried to swim pass it. When she turned around to untied the knot, she saw a blurred of shadow dashed across the kelps.

"Hello?"

But there weren't any light flashing back.

I could have swear someone was there.

Just as she finally broke free from the kelp's tentacles, she was greeted by streams of bubbles floating upwards from a valley below, surrounded by various coral reefs grown around the slopes and ledges. Turtles and fishes swimming around. Contrasting colours against the corals and the sand alike. She felt the water here was warmer than before.

Prince Turtle had already placed himself at the centre of the valley. Chasing the bubbles that were dispersed irregularly from the vents below. Sometimes, a huge streak of bubbles would blast from the vent and blocking the view. When he saw her, He beckoned her to come.

Rainbow slid out of the kelps. A streak of warm bubbles caress swept away all her worries and strains in her as she float past them. In an instant, she could felt all the stresses and tensions in her muscle she never knew they exist. And the next moment, all the pain released into the sea, as if the mother sea had her under its wings and cooing her to sleep.

This must be all the fuzz and buzz of bubble massage those nobles and royalties talked about. She thought. Grandpa must give this a try someday.

"Isn't this amazing?" He danced around the bubbles as he flashed. "I have to bring you here early in the morning so it wouldn't be crowded. There is no place had more bubbles than this. My brothers and I…"

He paused. No longer flapping his tail and wings.

He must be remembering the times with his brothers. She stare into the bubbles then to the corals above. And me, with my grandpa.

"So…" The little prince said. "I was thinking. I know this is long overdue. So long, that even the librarian could have my hide tanned if I hadn't return a borrowed scroll. So maybe- Erm- We should- You know-"

"Introduce ourselves? To each other I mean." He finished.

Puzzled. Rainbow lowered herself and looked into his eyes.

"You don't know my name." She said.

Prince Turtle clasped his talons around his face and flatten himself on the floor. Utterly embarrassed by it.

But she was the one should be guilty one. All these time, she had not once thought about telling him her name. She just barged right into his life. Giving him unsolicited care and advices. At least she didn't gave him any trouble. She hoped.

"I'm really sorry. I must had thought that you being a prince and I'm a servant required no introduction. But here we are." She straighten herself and bow towards him. "Prince Turtle. My name is Rainbow. Your humble servant."

He shook his head.

"There's no need to be so formal. And besides I'm not a prince. At least not worthy of it. I kept telling you that but you that but you ignore it."

"But you are a prince. I can't just call your name like anyone else. That would be rude of me. Others might think I'm disrespecting." She said.

"Yes. But I want to be your friend. No servant-royalty between us. Just friend." He looked into her eyes. With much determination, he flashed. "Turtle. Just Turtle."

"Alright. Turtle." She grinned. "But just to be clear. It's only between us. I don't want others chasing my head - Or teeth - for thinking I'm being rude."

He nodded in response.

"Right. Of course. Rainbow. That's sounded like a RainWing name."

"Really? I never thought of it. Maybe because I had never seen a RainWing before."

"Sorry, sorry." He lowered his head. "I shouldn't have said that."

"Well…"

She lifted one side of her wing. Slowly, she changed the angle which the light touched her wing and it shined with iridescence colours all around it. To add upon them, she lit up luminescence stripe underneath her wings. Showing those raindrop pattern.

"Whoa. They are gorgeous." His talon outstretched to touch it. "It looks as if they are raining in your wings."

"And you know what's come after a rain?" She said.

He nodded slowly. Totally entranced by the colours of her wing. Then, he narrowed his eyes and leaned closer to her.

"This pattern is very familiar. I thought I had saw it somewhere in the scrolls." His talon almost touching her wing.

"Really? Which one?" She said.

"Maybe in some scrolls on SeaWing's appearances. Physiology? Physiognomy? I'm not sure. I'll try searching it back in the library." He looked up in thought and said. "Oh, right. After the name, then hobbies." He cleared his throat. "I like to read and write stories, especially the heroic ones. And play with my brothers. Oh and sometimes, chase some bubbles. And er-"

"I think that's about it. I'm a boring dragon. I'll bet you already knew that." He said in embarrassment.

"No Turtle. That's not it. You like stories. You read them. You write them. Those stacks of paper and scrolls in your room are the marks of a writer. There's no way a writer is boring. Or else, how could they came up with all those interesting stories?" She replied.

"Right. I guess I did that. Thank you. But I'm not a writer anymore. No one bothered to read them anyway. Unlike my brothers, all of they did amazing stuff while me and my stories just piled there. Doing nothing."

"You're still young. There are so many years ahead of you. You can't compare yourself to someone who had at least five years of head start."

He shrugged. "So what about you?"

"Me? I like to collect shells."

Her talon went into her satchel and pulled out a conch shell as large as her talon could hold.

"Shell collection. I had a huge collection back in my old cave. But now, I don't have the time or energy to do so. Especially when you need to comb at least a few beaches for the amazing ones." She handed the shell to Turtle. "But you can have this."

"A gift? No one had gave me anything since my first grand ball." He grabbed the shell with both talons carefully. "Thank you."

"Oh, there is more to it." She guided his talons up beside his ears and said. "If by any chance you were deep in the mainland, ever so lonely and lost. Put this shell at your ears and you might hear those rolling waves in the shell. They say the shells did these because after they were washed up on shore, they missed the ocean so much that they echoed them deep in their shell. The larger the shell, the clearer you can hear them."

Turtle's eyes lit up as if there was magic held on his talon. He tried to listen the sound by putting his ear closer to the shell. Only to realise that they were under sea and the shell was probably not yearning for it.

"Come. Let's head to the corals. I have plenty more to show you." She said and led the way up the slope into the corals.

They landed an opening between the corals. About three dragon length around them before any coral was in touching range. Upon landing, Turtle was quick to shuffle close to her.

"They told us that we shouldn't touch any corals unless you knew any of them." He explained. "And even if you do, some looked so alike that you might get confused with the poisonous one."

"Well. Just so happened I'm an expert in corals. And judging by the looks around here. There isn't any poisonous one grows here. See." She touched a nearby coral with a light tap. "Nothing to be afraid of."

With caution, Turtle extended his talon to a nearby coral. Then, a quick poke at it. Having content nothing bad came out of it. He began stroking it.

Last thing Rainbow saw was his nervous smile before his whole body was enveloped in black mist.

"Turtle! Turtle!"

She flashed in quick succession but she couldn't see any hint of replies through the mist. It oozed and spread slowly in all direction. She tried to get closer but it stung her eyes. Quickly, she searched in her mind for any coral able to conjure up this mysterious black mist but failed to do so.

At the corner of her eyes, she saw something swam out from the mist. A creature with tentacles and a round semi-translucent blob.

Realising what it was. She extended her talon into the mist, trying to locate the prince by touch. Then, her claws poked on something which she then grabbed and pulled gently towards her. Turtle was still flailing in her arm while trying to calm him down. She grabbed a nearby kelp and rubbed it against his eyes. That finally made him settle down.

"What was that? I didn't knew coral could spill black stuff like that." He flashed while still rubbing his eyes with the kelp.

"Those black stuff were ink and it was an octopus you were touching. Look." She pointed at the fleeing tentacles that was annoyed by their presence. "It must had been there all long, camouflaged on top of the corals! Until you triggered its defence mechanism."

"I never knew octopus could do that. But I wished it could have let me know that I was disturbing it in another way." He let go the kelp and it drifted away from them.

"I guess sightseeing and chasing bubbles will do for now." She said.

Staring at the corals, she couldn't help but to be reminded of her grandfather. His warm smile. His stories of the rainbow garden. His words of advice.

"Oh, Turtle. I heard you visited my grandfather two days ago." She said. "Not that he told me a lot about it. How was it?"

"It was… informative." His claws scribbled the sands.

"Well if it's private stuff then-"

"No, no. I did say I'm going tell you everything…" He said. "I asked him 'How do you live up to the expectation of others' and 'What its means to be a prince'. He told me that I was too young to be worrying about these and should be enjoying my years of dragonet-hood. But it doesn't matter now, it's too late. I screwed up and my sisters are dead now."

"Turtle…" Rainbow wanted to close her wings around him but he shunned away. "I never knew what happened that day. No one told me- Prince Hammerhead said that-… What actually happened that day? You didn't really kill your sister, did you?"

His wings shuddered from what must be the act of recalling that day. Then, he flashed.

"It doesn't matter. They are dead and it's my fault."

"Not to me. I care because I believe you didn't actually kill you sister. It was an accident, wasn't it? Tell me Turtle. What actually happened?" She said.

Turtle hesitated at first. Then, he looked her in the eyes and said.

"Me and brother. We were playing right outside the Deep Palace. Mother went out to work and father went to the hatchery to check on the eggs. When father came back, he came with an urgent task. He wanted to find Snapper, the deputy chief of dragonet care that was supposed to be in the palace. And he asked if anyone would like to help. Thinking back. I really shouldn't have but I volunteered."

He shook his head and continued. "Like the hero of the story who was presented the chance to do good… Droplet, discovered MudWings' plan to invade the palace. Indigo, who fought against the rogue animus dragon. I thought it's my turn. I thought finally I could have done something that make my parents proud. And so I went into the palace and start searching. In the sleeping quarter, dining hall, the hallway… Everywhere. But I still can't find her. I even asked Moray about it." He said.

"Moray?" She said.

"Yes. I saw her in the kitchen and she said she didn't know where she was. And Uncle Shark too. He was leaving the guards' resting cave when I tried to ask him but he ignored me." He said. "But the biggest problem was I couldn't remember what Snapper look like. I think I met her before but I couldn't tell. Then, I sort of… wandered around. Even though, father said it was REALLY important. I thought Snapper might be out in the sea or maybe the Summer Palace. But she was told not to leave the palace so I continued my search. Father later found me at the Garden of wounded and I was scolded for not able to find Snapper.

"It was only later that I learnt that Abalone was sick in the hatchery and I could have find a healer instead. Everything would had been fine. Father would had been in the hatchery. The assassin would never have entered the hatchery. And my sisters would have hatched…" His voice trailed off.

"It was an unfortunate mistake…" Rainbow flashed. "No, not even a mistake. Everyone knew Snapper was supposed to be at the palace but she wasn't there. You were told to find her but never knew the reason behind it. Of course you wouldn't know to send others because the king didn't told you otherwise."

Then she furrowed her brow and said.

"But why Prince Hammerhead would ever said that you killed the princesses? Wouldn't that seem far-fetched to anyone?"

"I… I could have found her." His talons went to the pouch around his neck and squeezed it. "If only I was more determined."

She wondered what he meant. Determination could go a long way. But in this case, it hardly mattered when Snapper wasn't even in the palace.

"If you were to followed her out into the sea. I'm afraid you might get lost. Besides, even if you do find her. I'm not sure that would be in time to save Abalone." She said.

He nodded, but still visibly unconvinced.

"I'm sorry. This was supposed to be a happy day and I ruined it, didn't I?" she said.

"No. In fact, I felt better." He smiled back. "Oh right. To answer the previous question. Your grandfather gave me answer on it. I think it sort of an advice? Or wisdom?"

"Did he clasped his talons like this?"

She held out her talon in a ball shape to him and flashed water with her scale.

"Yes, just like that. He said that I should be like water. Adaptable to all shape and size, like how the water filled in my talon. But still retain some part of itself. I think it meant for me to be flexible but never forget yourself? I don't know…"

Ah, grandpa. You cheeky eel. You must have known that the little prince wouldn 't able to understand them by his own.

"I think I know what he meant. You got the flexibility part right. Among all the thing that we encountered in our present and the future. No matter how much preparation we made. We can never fully ready for what's to be come. Adjust to the life and circumstances, then you shall find your way through. Just like water." She pointed up to the sky. "Water doesn't just stay in the sea. They became clouds. Then rain. Raindrops fall into streams and merge into rivers. Some flows into a lake, others form waterfall. But they always flow back into the sea. Water always returns to where they came. They never forget who they were and where they came from."

"Be like water, but never forget to assert yourself when necessary." She said.

"Be like water." Turtle echoed her flashes while staring up into sea surface. His eyes glinted with awe.

Grandpa, I hoped I delivered your message correctly. She thought. You must have known that he, a prince of SeaWing, might one day be seated among the councils and taken the chance guide him. Even if the chances of that happen among his brothers are low. To remember that even in the face of power, always be reminded of your true nature. Look back and be grateful for those who journeyed alongside him.

"Talons of Power."

Rainbow snapped back to Turtle's flashing scales.

"Tell me. Honestly. What if I were to attend the ceremony and revealed that I'm an animus dragon. Would you still be friend with me? Knowing that one day I might snapped and horribly murder everyone I know. Including you?"

For a while, she just stare at him. Then she said.

"If the ceremony really did test you out as an animus dragon, then I have no doubt you wouldn't have turn into that. Look into your heart: your action to volunteer to help your father, your eagerness to make your parents proud and admiration for heroic deeds. I know that if you're an animus dragon, you will be a great one." She continued. "Besides, I'm sure that if you're aware of the consequences, you would be careful to let that let bad things happened right? Not all animus dragon are bad. Didn't Fathom save Pyrrhia from certain doom?"

"He did. But he also vanished among waves. No one knew what's become of him…" He said.

"Yes. Not exactly a fairy tale ending." Rainbow thought for a while before asking. "Turtle. Why did you want to avoid the Talons of Power ceremony?"

"I… I'm scared…"

The words stuck like something caught between his flashing scales. She saw the old shadow of his frighten self crept back into his eyes. Knew she had to change the subject before he began to tremble again.

"It's fine, Turtle. I just wonder how they will test for an animus dragon. I have never been tested before."

"If you're an animus dragon, you would've know." He said.

"Hm… Wait. How did you know? You have never attended a ceremony before." She said.

"I- err- I read it. Somewhere among the scrolls. Stories like the Indigo, the animus slayer. They describe how animus dragon cast their spell." He said. "There is no need the ceremony to actually test whether you're an animus dragon. We do it right here. Right now. Come."

He grabbed her by the talon and dragged her to a far corner of the valley. Away from the SeaWings who recently arrived. And settle down with her. He pulled out the conch shell which she gave and placed it in her talon.

"We'll use this to test you but listen VERY closely. You must repeat the very words I said. Not a single change of word. Not a word less, alright? You must begin the sentence with 'I enchant this'."

Rainbow nodded at his request.

"Alright. Hold the shell in your open talon and you may start the words I just said." Turtle said.

"I enchant this…" She began.

"Conch shell to float up into the sea surface." He said and she echoed. "And return to my talon after it reaches the surface."

When the last word flashed through her scales, she felt the shell in her open talon seem to shudder. And then…

Nothing. The shell just laid there. Doing nothing.

"Must be the currents that moved it." She tried to shake the shell into life but to no avail.

"Trust me. It's better this way. Being an animus dragon is not all powerful and great. There is a lot of expectation and probably a lot of disappointment too." He said.

It was until Turtle tried to grab the conch shell that she finally aware of her talon was clenching the shell with all her might. When she let go of the shell, there were marking etched into her talon.

"I'm sorry. I know you mean to use it to save your grandfather. But once you have a taste of animus magic, you can't go back. You might keep on using it over and over, and over. Until you have gone insane. But not that I don't want your grandfather healthy or anything. It's just- What I wanted to say is- I meant-" He stopped flashing and lowered his head. "I'm sorry."

"Yes, that thought did crossed my mind. But don't be. Hasn't it been quite some time since we last had an animus dragon? Even in the slightest chance, I had hoped that the 'Talons of Power' ceremony could find out who's the animus dragon. Then I could ask him- or her, to heal my grandfather. Just one spell. Is all I would have asked for… Not that me or my grandpa is anyone of importance. That power is probably going to be used for war effort, wealth, prosperity and what-not. What's one less dragon in the kingdom of the sea, right? It's just like another day." She said.

Rainbow felt a talon placed on top of hers but she didn't dare to look at it. Afraid that the sorrow in her eyes might betrayed her so she adverted her stare into the surface above.

A pink blur swoop off the corner of her eyes and her eyes was quick to follow it. It was a dolphin. A rare pink one. It was snooping around the coral. Probably searching for some food.

From her satchel, she quickly drawn out a talonful of shrimps and waved to get its attention. At first, the dolphin was wary of her but when she lifted the shrimp up for it to see. It began to swim towards them. Turtle, upon seeing it, quickly hid himself under her wing.

"It's alright Turtle. It's not aggressive. Most of them at least. Here." She handed him the shrimps. "Feed it and it probably will play with you."

The dolphin was eyeing them with one eye then another. Circling them while keeping at least a dragon length. Its eyes so full of curiosity that no wonder dragons are calling them as intelligent creatures. Some, like Queen Coral, had even decreed that they might even be distantly related to dragons! But no matter how she thought about it. That couldn't be true, could it?

Rainbow felt her wing lifted as Turtle slowly emerged beneath. The shrimps were clutched in both of his talon, close to his chest. The dolphin spotted them and homed into it. Its snout just a talon length away from the shrimps. As if it was asking for permission before eating them.

She gave Turtle a little push in the back and he extended his talons towards it. Still keeping his eyes close. In a blink of an eye, the dolphin scooped up the shrimps and slid them under it snout. Satisfied with its offering, it began to rub it snout against his chest.

"I think it's trying to say thank you." She said.

"T-Thanks to you too."

Turtle pet the dolphin and it snuggled closer into him.

"I wonder why this one was left alone. I always thought dolphin swam in pods." He flashed in thoughtful. "Maybe it is pink and the others cast it out."

Rainbow looked back at the dolphin. There were no sign of injury anywhere. Nor it was appeared to be stunted in anyway.

"Ï would rather believe that it was separated by some stroke of ill-fortunate events. There was some volcanic activities weeks ago. Maybe it was separated because of it." She said

He nodded and continued stroking it with all his heart. Seemingly found solace in it. After a couple of more pets, the dolphin gave a couple of high-pitch squeaks before it whipped around and swam into the open sea. Both of them waved as it vanished into the thin air.

"Well then, that was an interesting morning. Sun is high and I think it's time for our lunch. Go wait in your room while I get them prepare. Okay?" Rainbow said.

"Okay. But remember. We're going to the library later. There are some interesting new scrolls brought in there. I did like to read them."

With a thrust from his tail, Turtle swam ahead of her into the tendrils of kelps. Back towards the direction of the Summer Palace. She was about to leave when she noticed the conch shell she just gave him. It was left half covered with sand on the seafloor.

She picked up and brushed the sands off it. He shall get a little reminder of checking his stuff before leaving. Only after he had his lunch of course.

Out from the corner of her eyes, she saw one of the kelps moved. As if someone brushed them aside.

"Turtle? Is that you?"

Then a shadow crossed from one thick bush to another.

"Who was it? Why are you hiding?"

She paddled lightly towards the bushes and with one quick swipe…

She saw nothing. Or rather, a huge web of seaweed was all she saw. It fell on her so sudden that she barely had time flash anything. Covering her from horn to tail tip. She didn't dare to move. Only through the tiny holes of the interweaving seaweeds sack, she saw lights flashed through them in rhythmic patterns. Someone's out there and there were at least two of them.

Then, a forceful tuck from side and she fell over. She felt her side scrubbed painfully as it was dragged across the seafloor.

"Wait! Stop! I beg of you!"

But she knew it was futile attempt of communication through the thick layer seaweed. So she tried to claw through tiny holes, hoping to break free. Someone out there didn't like that because she received a blow straight into her stomach which knocked a wind out of her. Clutching in pain, she lay there breathing. Not dare to move any muscle for fear of retaliation.

Where are you dragging me? And why?

Everything went still for a moment, nothing but the breaths of her gills vibrated in her ears.

Then, the only things you could only felt were the flurry of pain all around her. In her chest, her wings and her back. One stomped on her tail that sent a shock of agonising pain she never thought possible and quickly, she tucked her tail in front of her chest. The rest of beating was a blur of mess as she curled herself in a ball. Trying to separate herself from all the kicks and blows with thin wall made of her talons and wings.

She was still trembling when beating finally stopped. Or perhaps it had already stopped for some time. She didn't know. Pain had filled her ear with dull throbbing hum and what was left of her sore broken body. For a long time she didn't move. Not until she was sure that no one was around anymore and she crawled her way out of the seaweed web.

The only witness was the kelp forest around her. Waving at her as she searched for her perpetrators. But to no avail.