Chapter 3
PROLOGUE
A dragon was trying to hide in the storm
Kinkajou and Jambo gasped for no reason.
Lighting flickered across the dark clouds. Hvitur clutched his fragile cargo closer.
"Isn't Hvitur the dragon from the fifth circle who disappeared?" Hailstorm asked his queen.
"Yes" Queen Glacier answered.
Every Icewing present was glad that Hailstorm was back, just like Peril was glad to find that her brother was alive and with her currently.
Sky still hadn't filled in Peril with his experience with the scavengers, but Peril let it slide.
If he could make it over the mountains, he'd be safe. He'd escaped the sky dragon's palace unseen.
"I will have to kill the guards on duty that day" Scarlet stated, and Ruby growled at her.
Before Mudslide could start reading again Kestrel, Webs, Dune, Asha, Hvitur and Nautilus landed with a thud, all looking dazed. Sunny quickly filled them in about what was happening and told to sit with their respective tribes.
Asha happily went and sat with the mudwings and gave a hug to Clay and siblings. Kestrel had no intention of sitting with the skwings but when she saw Peril and Sky her heart missed a beat and then went and sat next to them.
Webs sat next to Riptide and none of the seawings were happy about it. Nautilus sat next to Webs. Dune well least everyone thought it was Dune, Because of the spell all his injuries had disappeared. He sat far away from Thorn, trying to ignore her glares.
And the secret cave was so close….
Every dragon leaned forward to know the location of the cave.
But his theft had not been as stealthy as he thought, and eyes as black as obsidian were tracking him from below.
"Skywings don't have black eyes" Tamarin stated.
After having her eyesight back, she had started making the most of it by observing every little thing.
Glory smiled at her friend and nodded.
The enormous dragon on the mountain ledge had pale gold scales that radiated heat like a desert horizon.
"That sounds like burn" Sixclaws said.
Asha shot a worried glance at her friend, who gave her a sad smile in return.
Her black eyes narrowed, watching the gleam of silver wings far up in the clouds.
"Definitely Burn" Tundra beat Sixclaws by a second
She flicked her tail, and behind her two more dragons rose to the sky and dove into the heart of the storm.
No dragon dared to interrupt now since many knew what was going to happen.
Asha silently got up and went and sat next to Hvitur and wrapped her wings around him.
A piercing shriek echoed off the mountains as their talons seized the moon-pale ice dragon. " Bind his mouth," the waiting dragon ordered as her soldiers dropped Hvitur on the slick, wet ledge in front of her.
Hvitur glanced down miserably, hoping to change the outcome.
He was already inhaling, ready to attack. "Quickly!"
The icewings were glad that other tribes and Burn herself feared their frost breath.
One of the soldiers grabbed a chain from a pile of smoldering coals. He threw it around the ice dragon's snout, clamping his jaws together with sizzling smell of burning scales.
Many dragons shot sympathetic looks at Hvitur. Everyone knew that no ice dragon found fond of heat.
Hvitur let out a muffled scream.
"Why am I not trying to shove them!?" Hvitur hissed
"To Late." The sand dragon's forked tongue slithered in and out of her mouth. "You won't be using your freezing- death breath on us, ice dragon."
"IT IS CALLED FROST-BREARTH NOT, FREEZING-DEATH BREATH" Roared the icewings
"Same thing" snorted Auklet.
"He was carrying this, Queen burn,"
All the dragons hissed at the thought of Burn being queen.
"wait aren't mudwings in an alliance with Burn? questioned Secretkeeper.
Queen Moorhen nodded.
"So, then you should be glad that Burn is queen" Turtle interjected.
Queen Moorhen's brother, Swamp looked at his sister and then at Turtle and the waiting dragons. "My sister accepted Burn's alliance only because, if Burn became Queen, she would wipe out the mudwings for not accepting her offer."
Moorhen gave her bigwings a small smile.
"So, you joined the war to protect your own tribe!? That sounds twisted but I see it. "Coral said.
Said one of the soldiers, handing her a dragon egg.
The dragonets of destiny inhaled loudly. They were close to finding out what happened to the skywing egg.
Burn squinted at the egg through the downpour." This is not an Icewing egg" she hissed.
"Ohh wow, not even the smartest dragons would have been able to know that "Peril said sarcastically, trying to light up the mood. There were some snickers, but the tension hung in the air.
"You stole this from the skywing palace."
The icewing stared back at her. Hissing steam circled his snout where the hot chains met the cold silver scales.
Hvitur rubbed his snout.
"You thought you got away unnoticed, didn't you?" Burn said
"No, I very much knew that I didn't get away unseen "
"My skywing ally is no fool."
"That one thing mother is not" Ruby sated.
"Queen Scarlet knows everything that happens in her kingdom. Her lookouts reported an icewing thief sneaking away, And I decided finding you might add some violence to my boring visit."
" THAT SANDSNORTER-MOON-BLASTED-DRAGON!"
"PENGUIN-SNOUTED-SEVENTH-CIRCLE-SON-OF-WALRUS!"
"STUPID-OVERGROWN-LIZARD!"
"SQUID-BRAIN-SON-OF-A-DUCK!"
"HOLY-MOTHER-OF-LAVA!"
"FAT-OVERGROWN-PIGS-BUTT!"
The rainwings kept quiet since none of them could think of an insult ( excluding Glory).
Burn held the large egg up to the light of the fire and turned itslowly. Red and gold shimmered below the pale, smooth surface."Yes. This is a SkyWing egg about to hatch," Burn mused. "Why would my sister send you to steal a SkyWing dragonet? Blaze hates any dragon younger and prettier than she is."
" The last part's true" every dragon who had met Blaze snorted.
She thought for a moment as rain drummed on the ledge around them. "Unless ... the brightest night is tomorrow. ..."Her tail flicked up like a scorpion's, the poisonous barb inches from Hvitur's eyes. "You're not in Blaze's army, are you? You're one of those insipid underground peace-mongers ."
Many dragons snorted at that comment. Few agreed with Burn. The dragons present who were in the talons of peace looked annoyed.
The Talons of Peace?" said one of the soldiers. "You mean they're real?"
Riptide looked at Nautilus expectantly.
" We were just Whispers and rumors at that time, hence no one knew if were real or where we lived"
"Ahh!" Riptide nodded understandingly.
Burn snorted." A few worms crying over a little blood.
" WE ARE NOT WORMS AND FOR MOONS SAKE WE DON'T CRY OVER BLOOD !" roared the dragons.
Unwrap his chains. He won't be able to freeze until his scales cool down."
The icewings looked at him in pity.
"OH!" Umber suddenly perked up "This means that icewings are similar"
Umber was met by blank stares.
"We are polar opposites" Swamp said. And the nightwings and sandwings snickered.
Starflight understanding immediately nodded. " Yeah, because mudwings can only breathe fire when their scales are warm and icewings when there scales are cold!"
The two tribes stared at each other " guess we are not polar opposites " Winter said.
The enormous sand dragon leaned closer as her soldiers pulled the chain away. " Now tell me, ice dragon, do you really believe in the that pompous old nightwing's prophecy?"
" Mommy what is the meaning of pompous?" Auklet and Cliff asked their respective mothers in unison. They both looked at each other and would have been bright pink if they had been rainwings.
" I will tell you later Cliff"
" Later, dear daughter"
" Haven't enough dragons died for your war?" snarled Hvitur, wincing at the pain in his jaws.
Hvitur looked proud that he had the courage to stand up to Burn.
" You go Hvitur " Tsunami cheered. The dragons looked at her like she was crazy but Hvitur gave her a grateful smile.
"All of Pyrrhia has suffered for the last twelve years. The prophecy says-"
" I don't care. No prophecy decides what happens to me," Burn interrupted.
"Wow! Burn reminds me a lot of Tsunami" Starflight said
"Thank you! I mean hey! I am nothing like Burn!"
Starflight snorted.
" I'm not letting a bunch of words or baby dragons choose when I die or what I bow to. We can have peace when my sisters die and I am Queen of Sandwings." Her venomous tail dipped closer to the silver dragon.
Everyone winced.
Rain plastered on Hvitur's scales. He glared at her. "The dragonets are coming whether you like it or not, and they will choose who the next Sandwing Queen should be"
"We should stop here, it's almost lunch time and rainwing suntime " Glory said eyeing Jambu's green scales.
Clay and all the other mudwings snorted and immediately started complaining about hating cliffhangers.
Skywings snorted but secretly agreed with the mudwings.
Sandwings and nightwings agreed with Glory.
And so everyone left for sleeping or hunting.
Clay and his sis plus the royal family went hunting.
Icewings went for training and decided to hunt later.
Sandwings went on their floor and ate lizards.
Nightwings went hunting as well.
And deathbringer followed Glory and the rainwings.
Skywings decided to fly around and get a better look at the palace. And seawings went for a swim.
