This is the final chapter of part 1 and things will begin to move fast in the next chapter/part. Also this chapter is 6000 words! Crikey. As always, I hope you enjoy. -MAG
Tern awoke before the SandWings and was very eager to leave the fortress, and I wouldn't blame her. Her parents were probably wondering where she had gone since I hadn't notified them of my plans. Soon enough I would be able to explain though, and wipe out their debt, which should assuage their worries.
Apart from Horizon, the only other SandWing awake was Ocotillo, who was busy casting dark looks at Horizon while cleaning the kitchen and muttering about missing food. The guard shrugged off the accusations and continued reading a scroll.
Horizon piped up when we were preparing to leave. "Hey, leaving so soon? Did my charm and dashing looks scare you away?"
"We have business in the palace today, so we need to leave immediately."
"Shame, we're supposed to get a shipment of food, and I heard that the caravans are bringing fried rattlesnakes and mead."
"Yeah, and they'll suspiciously disappear overnight," remarked Ocotillo sarcastically. "I know where the rest of the bug crisps went."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Horizon replied sweetly while not so subtly winking at me. "Oh well, more food for me, I mean for everyone else. I wish you the best of luck with the jewel. Do come back and tell me what it is because I really want to know."
"I cannot make promises that far into the future," I stated bluntly.
"Bah, alright go do your secret IceWing business then. And you," Horizon turned to face Tern and smiled benevolently, "Don't drink so much currant juice young one."
The young IceWing sat back abashed. "Yes, I figured maybe I had a glass too many."
Ocotillo shoved Horizon aside and opened up the gate to a bright and clear sky outside. "Since the princess is still asleep, and likely will be for a long time, she will be unavailable to send you off. As the highest ranking officer currently awake, I'll stamp your scroll."
It was customary of IceWing delegations to carry a diplomatic record of visits for filing purposes. Given the war, Princess Blaze was the only dragon that IceWings visited during the past twelve years so every single stamp was the same. Still, traditions were followed and thus I retrieved the scroll, unfurled it and presented it to Ocotillo, who dutifully stamped it with his right talon and the visit was officially over.
Horizon waved cheekily while munching on a snack and I saw Tern glancing back occasionally, watching the fortress and the small yellow dot diminish in size until they were no longer visible.
Once we had settled into a smooth comfortable cruise northward, Tern shouted out to me. "Hey Auster, will you come with me to see my parents? They're probably really worried and they would never believe me if I told them where we went. Just don't mention the currant juice please." Her eyes pleaded silently but with just the smallest hint of exaltation, my guess is that no matter the consequence, she would have tried that currant juice anyways.
"That can be arranged," I responded. "Afterwards, we will go to the courts to settle your father's debt."
Tern dipped in her flight, startled, then frowned accusingly. "How do you know about the debts? Who told you?"
I smiled disarmingly, hoping that would suffice for a head pat. "I have access to records and connections in certain departments. Removing your family's debt is the least I could do for your assistance."
"Well, thanks," uttered the young IceWing, refusing to make eye contact.
The rest of the flight was conducted in silence, with the pleasant rush of air and affable wing flap contributing wholly to the ears. By midday, the outline of the palace faded into view, rising from the horizon.
My instincts told me to head for the south wing but the presence of Tern beside me forced me west towards the markets and the peasantry accommodations. Now of course, the peasantry didn't reside within the palace walls, but since the market was were they spent the vast majority of their time, they set up igloos and resided in their self constructed homes outside the palace borders.
I followed Tern over the collection of huts and alighted on a mushy unkempt street, though really it was nothing more than a cleared out path, with none of the care and precision put into its existence unlike the market streets.
We arrived at a small shack, made of poorly cut rough ice bricks and molded together with musty caribou plaster. It held up surprisingly well given the shoddy construction.
Feesh was carving a block of wood at the table with his sharp scissor like talons, and the other IceWing I presumed was his mate. Tern's mother peered at me, assessing the stranger in her house before deeming me not a threat and ignoring me in favor of sternly embracing her daughter.
"Tern," she chided, "You missed the fish harvest yesterday, I hope you have an alternative to bring in much needed income. You know we need the money, ahem Skua."
Feesh coughed awkwardly and avoided her gaze by pulling his wings higher over his head and focusing on his carving.
"It's ok mom, this amazing lady here has a solution."
The gruff IceWing turned her piercing gaze to me, regarding my jewelry and imposing posture with hesitation and disbelief. It was then I felt proper to introduce myself.
"I am Auster of the third circle. It has come to my attention that your family currently is at risk of being charged more than you can afford to pay. Your daughter has rendered an invaluable service to me, and thus it will not be difficult for me to convince the courts to nullify said debt."
"Sure, and in exchange, you're going to conscript my daughter and force my mate to work in the mines. No thank you, I've heard your stories before, and the answer is a NO." The IceWing bristled with indignance, her spikes rattling furiously. "Move, shoo, you're not welcome here, go do your recruiting elsewhere."
"You misunderstand. I am not associated with the army or the mines. If you will come with me to the courts, I will have your debts erased. Your daughter has already provided the assistance, and now I am repaying the favor."
"I'll see it when I believe," retorted Tern's mother, much to the embarrassment of Tern, who tapped at her mother's shoulder insistently.
"Mom, how about we go to the courts now and I promise Auster is as good as her word."
"Hmph! It's a waste of time, but there's nothing better to do. Skua! You're coming along, you caused this problem, and you're going to see it through."
Feesh shared a nervous smile with me and ruffled out his wings, following his mate outside. Tern shrugged with an expression that told me that her mother was always this unrelenting.
No matter, the few gold tokens were a small price to pay for Tern's loyalty. It was nice to have disposable income, and perhaps later I would pay a visit to Bering to maintain the appearance of an apprentice.
The courtrooms were still claustrophobic and imposing upon and I noticed Skua shuddering a little when he saw the statues of epic dragons crushing lesser opponents. His mate, however, marched on ahead, seething with disinterest. Though she wore no rings, IceWings cleared out of her way, avoiding her fuming glare.
Appeals were submitted to the appeals court, and generally this was the busiest court. Mink had gone to the military court for Hvitur's trials, where shiny scholars and bribed judges resided, but the appeals court was where the common citizens ended up most of the time, typically complaining about fees.
There was a long line full of disgruntled and bored dragons dragging their tails around and staring at the ceiling waiting for the clerk at the desk to read through their grievances and stamp denials.
Tern poked me with her tail and whispered, as everyone in the hall whispered, it was wrong to speak above such a quiet voice. "Is there any way we can skip the line?"
I shook my head.
"You're third circle, surely you can do something, we'll be here all day if we have to wait," Tern insisted agitatedly.
"Nothing I do will increase the speed, unless you can make the judge stamp faster."
"My mom is going to drill a hole in the wall if we have to wait for more than an hour."
"If she does, then the process will actually be quicker, because then she will be sent to the criminal courts, and those are always open. Very lucrative results, for the prosecutors." I had meant to stir up some humor in the young IceWing, but all I received for my intent was an exasperated huff and a turned back.
Truly, there was nothing I could do. The process was slow, because there was no need to make it fast. If dragons weren't willing to wait, then the collectors would show up at their homes and help themselves to their hoards. Meanwhile, assigning a single old clerk to the stamping process meant little cost, so why would anything change? You got the opportunity to appreciate the statues for longer anyhow.
Tern's mother was absolutely enraged after the line shifted forward mere talon lengths over the span of an hour. If I didn't do anything, the palace would probably explode from the blast of her unleashing her fury upon the hapless queue.
"Give me the registry ice pad," I told Tern's mother, "I'll take it to someone who can process it."
She eyed me suspiciously. "And who is that?"
"A friend of mine who works in accounting. Just give it to me and you can go about your own business. I assure you that my contact will have your issues solved."
"I don't trust you or your friend. I can just imagine that you're going to smash the ice pad and the collectors will come around and take away my family."
A bad idea was already forming in my mind. "Come along then, I will take you to her, she is a former commander, very efficient."
Tern's mother glanced at the remaining line and deemed it worse than following me to whatever crazy place I was going. "Show me then."
Mink always completed her work early in the morning in order to prepare for the bells, but now that she was second circle, much of her day was simply to be on hand for council meetings and to advise the queen, which meant that she sat around all day doing nothing. Queen Glacier wouldn't be back until tomorrow which meant Narwhal was in charge, and he preferred to make decisions himself. If I could get Bering to tell me where Mink was, then she could get this worthless debt scratched and over with.
The dragons behind gave us grateful smiles as we exited the queue and headed toward the south wing, not that their waiting time had been drastically reduced.
There were new guards this time, and they crossed their spears forbidding entrance. "Not those," he demanded, pointing at Skua and Tern's mother, "Those peasants stay out after what they pulled last time."
"They're with me," I asserted, flashing my rings, "As a third circle dragon, I order you to stand aside and allow us through."
"No can do," the guard glowered haughtily. "We have orders from a second circle dragon that overrides your authority. Either the peasants stay behind or you all do."
I probably should've kept the other dragons waiting in the courtyard, or at least Tern's mother, because she reacted quite strongly to the guard's insolent attitude by stalking up and pinning him against the wall. The other guard moved to disentangle them but I held up a warning talon and they stayed quiet.
"LET US THROUGH OR I WILL DETACH YOUR HORNS ONE BY ONE AND STAB THEM INTO YOUR USELESS BRAIN, YOU LOWLY CUR MAGGOTY WORTHLESS SCRAP. I WAITED FOR OVER AN HOUR AND I WANT RESULTS NOW!" shrieked the irate IceWing.
"But ma'am, I have to follow rules-" he protested feebly.
"YOUR INSIPID RULES CAN CHEW ON MY TALONS," she brandished her razor sharp claws close to the guard, causing him to flinch. Out of all the training that guards received, dealing with angry peasants was not a topic covered in depth.
I sidled up beside Tern's mother, poked the guard's nose gently and inquired, "Which second circle dragon mandated this rule?"
"Tundra," he gasped, wriggling under the grasp of the livid IceWing, "She said that commoners weren't allowed in the south wing without her permission. Now can I please go?" Tern's mother tightened her grip.
"Tundra, that's a problem." I muttered. When the queen was away, Narwhal was in charge, and Tundra second in command, though the pair operated more as co-rulers. Second circle, second in command, it would be difficult to overrule her mandates, unless I had someone else equally or higher ranked. The only first circle dragons I knew were Narwhal and the queen's mate. Second circle had Alpine, who was far away in the eastern training grounds yelling at cadets but Mink, she was the very dragon we were on our way to see.
I turned back to the struggling guard and gestured to Tern's mother to release him, which she did and the guard promptly scurried away behind the protection of the other guard. "You know who Mink is?" I asked.
The guards nodded.
"She's second circle as well, and she demands to see these dragons immediately. Shall I tell her that the cause of the delay were two disobedient guards?"
"No please don't," the other guard begged, "We're already in sixth circle, if we get demoted we'll be stuck on the arctic island forever. But Tundra will be mad if she finds out and then we'll also be doomed."
"Then Tundra won't find out," I promised, patting the guard gently. "Mink will conduct the business and once done, these commoners will exit the palace from somewhere else, out of view. It will be as if you had no part in this."
"I'm still suspicious. I would rather have Mink yell at me than Tundra," the guard insisted. "If Mink wants us to let these dragons through, then she can come down here and tell us herself."
Tern's mother flexed her talons menacingly and growled, "You couldn't stop me getting through anyways. Come on, let's just beat these dunces and get it over with."
The first guard, still gingerly rubbing the scrapes on his neck, shuddered when hearing those words. "I can call backup," he whispered to the other guard.
"Why do you need backup?" a third voice came from behind. The guards jumped aside to reveal a skinny IceWing with a puzzled expression on his blotched snout. "Oh hey Auster, I was looking for you," Bering waved cordially.
"It seems you have found me," I replied tersely.
"What's with the entourage? Guards, leave us," he waved the guards away, who were all too happy to vacate the scene despite Bering only being third circle and the threat of Tundra looming over them.
"This family wants to see Mink for some debt erasure, where is she?"
"Mink's in her usual place, moping around."
"We'll go see her and get this nonsense over with." I started to move forward but Bering held up a wing, blocking my path.
"I really wanted to show you something, like right now. Can they go see Mink by themselves?"
Tern's mother piped up, "Look, if you just tell us where to go, then we'll get out of here and stop bothering you. This has gone on for long enough."
"Fine," I sighed. "Follow the stairs to the third level and enter the second room, tell Mink that Auster sent you."
The IceWing nodded in assent and beckoned her family to follow, but Tern stayed put. "Sir Bering, can I see too?"
Tern's mother narrowed her eyes and scolded her daughter. "Stop bothering the nobles, Tern, unless you want another fine and a barrel of fish to gut. I still haven't reprimanded you for the antic you pulled off last night."
Bering chuckled heartily. "It'll be alright missus, it's rare to see a dragonet so interested in my projects. Tern can come along if she'd like, and we'll take good care of her."
The mother scowled but with a prod from Skua, the pair dragged themselves up the stairs and out of sight.
"Alright, rule one," my employer stated. "No touching. Last time Auster touched something, it burned her talons, so fair warning just in case."
Although Tern did her best to hide her curiosity and smother the giggles, combined with Bering's cheeky grin, I couldn't help but feel embarrassed by the mention of the ring. "Whatever, it was a good learning experience" I retorted sourly.
"Quite so! So let's go shall we? I'll lead the way." The IceWing invited us down the hallway back into the lab of crazy experiments and inadequate safety measures.
Tern breathed in wonder at the sight of the apparatuses and glowing beakers, taking in the colorful experience with a solid appreciation of Bering's work. Bering pointed her towards a collection of bubbling mixtures and the young IceWing gleefully bounded over to examine them.
"Now then, I can show you this exciting discovery," Bering rubbed his talons together eagerly and led me into the side atrium. The green quack was nowhere to be seen, but a horrifying yet strangely hypnotic phenomenon had replaced it. There was no doubt, with the sizzling, crackling and occasional ember flung into the dusty air, that this was a live, burning, fire.
"Impressed?" asked Bering, handing me a stick impaled with dark burnt lumps of flesh. "Try it, it's roast reindeer, tastes surprisingly good."
I nibbled a bit at the meat but the lump of anxiety roasting me from the inside prevented me from savoring the complex wood flavor. A fire inside the palace, though I knew that the palace was enchanted to not sustain any damage from such effects, felt incredibly illegal. And instead of using the fire for any meaningful research, Bering was using it for cooking meat that was perfectly fine raw!
"How did you do this?" I asked, still hypnotized by the inferno.
"I found some rings in the collection we brought back from the SkyWing fort, so I set them up around the room to focus sunlight onto the wood, and amazingly, a fire started.
"Is it safe?"
"Well, don't touch it, but since there's no fuel around, it can't spread. I've been testing this to see what kind of armor can resist fire because that's what the council seems to take interest in. Shame really, imagine all the foods we could try to roast."
He must have found my scrunched up snout hilarious as he broke out laughing. "Alright alright! No reindeer, but surely there's something that will taste incredible, we just have to find it. After developing the armor of course."
"Why did you need me here?"
Bering stopped smiling and lowered his voice. "You missed the council meeting yesterday."
"And? I thought I marked my absence."
"Yes, you were marked as going on a diplomatic mission to Blaze."
"And that's where I went," I replied, not understanding the issue.
Bering leaned in close and whispered, "Since you're a new unproven member on the council, it's quite suspicious that you would miss your second meeting. We thought that perhaps you had defected and were joining the enemy."
"Now why would you assume that?" I sputtered, astonished by the lack of faith from the council and my own employer.
"I didn't," Bering contended, "But a few of the higher ups did, especially since Hvitur also disappeared on the day of a council meeting. A few nut brains connected some imaginary dots and now they're accusing you of treason."
"That's no problem, I'll just show up to the next council meeting."
"They've put out a warrant for you."
"So you're saying I'll be arrested if I show my snout in public."
"No, it's not official, but if any of their allies see you, then they might be tempted to take you to the dungeons and ask questions later."
"So then what should I do?"
Bering sat down and thought for a moment, his brows furrowed in deep concentration. A moment later he stared at me with his head awry. "What were you doing in Blaze's fortress?"
"A diplomatic mission."
"That can't be the only thing. What else?"
"I went to see an old friend of mine, a SandWing soldier," I lied.
"Hmm. What's his name?"
"Hopeless romantic. Just kidding, it's Horizon."
"Ok, I haven't heard that name before, but sure. What else?"
"What do you mean what else? That's everything!"
"Can't be," Bering denied. "Especially since you just told me a lie."
"A lie? Excuse me mister, I wouldn't ever lie to you," I spat, outraged that my employer would ever assume that I was a liar.
"You couldn't have met Horizon, or any SandWing for that matter," he pointed out reasonably. "Guards don't get sent on delegations and you weren't in the army either. This was your first visit to the Sand Kingdom, which means that either you were really excited to meet Blaze, or you had something else to do." He shrugged as he tore my petty excuse of a lie to shreds.
"Obviously I just really wanted to visit Blaze."
"You don't need to tell me what your secret business is if you don't want to, but I hope that it's a good enough excuse for the council. I can't help you if you aren't willing to help yourself."
"They will be satisfied."
"I'm sure they will. Let's talk about something less grim. Who's your new friend?"
It took me a moment to realize he was talking about Tern, who was presumably still wandering around in the main room. "Her name is Tern," I said, "She showed promising potential."
"Well, if she's anything like her mother, I suspect that when she wants something, nothing will stop her."
I thought briefly about the currant juice.
"Let's go check out what she's discovered eh?" Bering punched me lightly, "Maybe she found the focusing ring."
Of course he had to bring it up again, it seemed like I would never be rid of the humiliation of the ring. I sulked after him, back into the main room, where Tern was definitely not burning herself.
The young IceWing had propped herself up comfortably on stool and appearing to be examining green. Upon closer inspection, she was peering intently at a piece of moss. How the mundane piece of foliage could entertain a dragon of her age was a mystery to me.
When Tern saw us enter, she perked up cheerfully. "Look! There's a lot of bugs wriggling around in this moss."
"Indeed," replied Bering with matching enthusiasm. "That is my caterpillar collection. Take a look with this," he said, giving her a large glass lens that magnified the view and enthralled the dragonet.
"Woah, they're really fuzzy."
"It protects them from the regular cold weather, and when the temperature gets really bad, then they will literally freeze until it gets warmer."
"So cool," breathed Tern.
I, on the other talon, could not understand the magic of the caterpillars and was thus exceedingly bored. I wondered how the caterpillars would look after being roasted on the fire.
As Bering continued lecturing his captivated audience, I mulled over the map in my satchel. I hadn't gotten a good look at it since leaving the fortress and so I rolled it out to check it, making sure that it would satisfy the council.
The scroll was made from a thick paper that felt substantial and quality under my talon, and unfurled to reveal a detailed map of north eastern Pyrrhia. Troop movements, hideout camps, weapons stashes were all labeled clearly to a degree that none of the IceWing reconnaissance agents were able to replicate. For instance, the agents had asserted that MudWing troops often rested on a certain mountain on their way to battle, but a squadron deployed to intercept them found nothing. Based on the map, it would appear that the MudWing troops actually had a camp two peaks over in a heavily forested area.
I poured over the map, committing the details to memory. It would be curious to see how Bering's air current map would overlap with this one, and given that Bering was just about wrapping up with instructing Tern, I would find out soon.
There as a sharp knock at the door and before either of us could respond, Mink barged in with a decidedly sour grimace, while Tern's parents cowered behind her. "Auster, what are these two IceWings doing in my office?" she demanded.
"They need to have their debt process," I replied. "And the court line was taking too long."
Mink said quite frankly, "I don't appreciate you just giving me random assignments. It was already hard enough to write in your spontaneous jaunt to the fortress, and now you want me to fulfill your every whim. I am not your secretary. Here," she thrust the ice pad at me, "Fill out the form yourself and stop bothering me!"
Without a further cursory glance to see if I understood how to fill out said ice pad, my former commander stormed off, shoving past Tern's parents who scrambled aside as to avoid the furious second circle IceWing.
While I stared at the ice pad, trying to figure out the strange terms, Bering walked up beside me, stifling giggles. "What!" I snapped at him.
"You must have done something really bad to get my sister riled up like that. I haven't heard her use that voice since I accidently flung ice cream at her many years ago."
"Help me with this," I demanded, presenting the ice pad to him.
Bering pushed it back gently, and turned around to face Tern's parents, welcoming them in to show them around the lab, especially the caterpillar exhibit.
Meanwhile all I wanted to do was smash the ice pad into tiny splinters, but that would be far more embarrassing than attempting to write in the answers. Which snow monster thought to include 'dilutive issuance of assignment' or 'bifurcation of intestate plaintiff' as part of the form? I scratched out a big N/A for both and hoped that it would suffice.
"Auster, you can't just write N/A for everything," a soft, compassionate voice came from by my side. I whirled around to see Tern sitting elegantly, tail wrapped around my talons, wearing a sympathetic smile. "I studied some of the court vocabulary since you recommended me to follow a court path, so I can help you fill out the form."
With the young IceWing's help, we were able to fill out the form as accurately as possible, including the 50 tokens to be taken out of my hoard, as payment for the infraction.
"Thank you for your help," I thanked Tern earnestly.
"Of course, I find these forms very tedious and complicated, but there's a certain art to them. I can submit it for you, I know where the filing departments are."
"Sure," I said, relieved that I wouldn't have to face Mink again.
The young IceWing took the tablet and led her confused parents out of the laboratory, leaving me alone with Bering, who had taken a keen interest in the abandoned map.
"So is this what you found in Blaze's fortress?" he asked.
"Yes," I confirmed, strolling over to roll up the map and place it back into the safety of my satchel. I was afraid that one of Bering's experiments might accidently shred the precious scroll.
"I guessed wrong then," he smiled. "I assumed you found another weapon cache, but now I see why you're confident that the council will approve of your absence. You're quite the detective, how were you not placed in the intelligence unit? This is a better find than even our top agents manage to bring."
"I just have hunches some times, and they turn out to be right," I shrugged.
"Those are some mighty fine hunches then. Wish I could comb through your mind to see how you came up with them, but I suppose it's a mystery."
"Indeed."
"Well then, I don't have anything else to show you, so how about you get some rest and prepare for the council meeting tomorrow?"
"There's another one? Why so soon?"
"Our agents reported some movements in the east, a combined force of MudWings and SkyWings amassing. But that's for tomorrow, go sleep Auster, you've had a long day."
It wasn't until I plopped into the fur lined bed that I realized my entire body ached and soon enough, the embrace of sleep enveloped me, sinking me into a more peaceful plane of existence.
The next morning I awoke to a knock at my door. A small sixth circle messenger awaited me, bowing and presenting an ice pad.
Tern had applied to become an apprentice at the courts, but not being of nobility, she had to have a sponsor who would be responsible for her, and I suppose it was logical to ask me. I signed the ice pad without hesitation and paid the messenger a token, who gave me a grateful smile before scurrying away.
I yawned and stretched, wondering about the council meeting. If it were true that the SkyWings and MudWings were planning a direct attack on the Ice Kingdom, then they would meet a gruesome death at the Great Ice Wall. Stream hadn't visited me in the past two days, so I had no way of knowing what the SkyWings were up to, but surely queens Scarlet and Moorhen wouldn't be dumb enough to send their troops to commit suicide.
I pondered the possibilities of this sighting on my way to the courtyard. Perhaps they weren't attacking pushing west and north into the Ice Kingdom, maybe they were after the SeaWings instead, trying to rout Blister's army. Or push into the rainforest? Nothing there but lazy RainWings, might be a good hideout though.
Walrus, what do you think?
-I don't think anything. I like seeing your mind spin though.
Very helpful.
-Well what do you want me to do?
Help me figure out why the SkyWings and MudWings are gathering.
-Maybe the queens ordered a massive dance party and that's what they're doing. I like that theory a lot, I mean, think about it. Queen Scarlet, dancing with Queen Moorhen. Yup, that's definitely what's happening.
You're useless.
-I just like to be on the optimistic side of things.
Save your optimism for when the war ends.
-There's that dragonet prophecy thing right, so the war should end soon right? Only 7 more years to go! Hooray.
It'll be faster than that if I had any say.
-I'm sure of it.
Queen Glacier was not pleased at all to see my amble into the courtyard, her snout contorting into subtle disgust and anger, that immediately changed to welcoming and friendly when she noticed Bering walk in behind me. The rest of the dragons gossiped and whispered when they saw me, but none dared to confront me directly. The satisfaction of insulting me wasn't worth the social cost and damage to reputation anyways.
Hidden under my wing, the map rubbed up against my scales, reminding me of the cure to the council's doubts about me. Surely once they saw this map, they would accept me as a valuable member.
The queen clapped her talons together, signifying the start of the meeting. "Welcome back, council members. This meeting was quite unprecedented, but the news from our agents is equally unexpected. You may have heard, and I am here to confirm, that a sizeable force made of MudWings and SkyWings are amassing in the mountains that separate our territories. I have requested that several of our best commanders join us today, so please make room for them.
Two burly, massive IceWings marched perfectly in sync into the courtyard, carving out a space at the table, the IceWings that occupied the seats originally moved aside quickly to allow them access.
"Unfortunately," the queen continued, "We do not know the whereabouts of Commander Hvitur currently, so he cannot provide input today, though this is his area of control. You may discuss."
The meeting erupted into a mass of hushed whispers among the members, though the two commanders sat eerily still, only moving their jaws slightly to speak, as if talking more prominently would ruin their perfect postures.
Bering stood alone, awkwardly trying to be agreeable to everyone. Mink, on the contrary, scowled and glared at anyone who's gaze passed over her.
After a few moments of this ruckus, Narwhal banged his talons on the table, ordering the dragons to silence themselves. "I know that this SkyWing and MudWing problem is the main topic of today's meeting," he spoke in his steady brusque voice that everyone associated with authority. "Before that, we must address a different issue. One of our members was missing at the last meeting, and now is her chance to explain why."
I could feel every dragon's stare suddenly snap onto me, and I was locked in place, like penguin who ahs realized that they were stuck on a melting iceberg, with orcas circling, ready to pounce and gain a tasty meal.
But duty was duty, and I stood solemnly to face the queen. "I did not attend the previous meeting, because I had diplomatic duties to fulfill."
The queen sat unsatisfied, gesturing for me to continue speaking.
"At Princess Blaze's fortress, I found a certain artifact that may prove useful to your endeavors. Particularly in this new development." I took out the scroll and unfurled it on the table, sliding it in the queen's direction.
The commanders took keen interest, even breaking form to lean in and inspect the map closer. Queen Glacier raised her eyebrows and Narwhal appeared outright impressed. "This is certainly a most useful asset," he deemed. "Where did you find it?"
"In the Sand Kingdom."
"Hmm," he grunted, unappeased by my nonspecific answer. "Commanders, can you tell us where the troops are coalescing?"
One of the commanders, the one who wore a thick set of armor and spoke as if there were rocks in his throat, stood up. I gave him the nickname of Iron Throat. The commander pointed at a specific spot, two peaks over from where the previous estimates had been. "That is the spot, and I have no doubt that they are planning a massive offensive," he said.
The other commander, whom I called Iceberg because of she moved like a block of ice, stood up beside her partner. "The problem is, we don't know where that massive offensive is headed. If they're coming our way, we won't be able to protect Blaze, though we will certainly fight till our last breaths."
Queen Glacier stroked the map thoughtfully. "With this additional information, can you tell me where they might come from?"
Iceberg drew a line through a few mountain passes and through the marsh. "They will avoid the colder northern peaks, and instead go through the southern swamps until they meet the sand kingdom, then they will make a beeline for Blaze's fortress."
"But they don't know where the fortress is," the queen replied.
"With hundreds of dragons scouring the area, they will find it eventually, and then we will most certainly lose," Iron Throat stated bluntly. "General Fox, what's your call?"
The old IceWing general creaked forward and studied the map. "Can we catch them out before that? They should only have a few squadrons assembled currently as the rest prepare. If we go in and squash the current troops, then they might be too scared to launch an assault."
"Auster," the queen addressed me, "When you were in the sand kingdom, did you see any enemy dragons flying about?"
"Negative, your majesty." I didn't recall seeing any other dragons on that lonely night by the cactus strand.
"Then I say it's not too late to surprise them with a little attack of our own," Queen Glacier smiled wickedly, slamming her talon onto the little markings of the MudWing and SkyWing camps.