Sunny shivered from the water in her wings, the dim lights of the Scorpion Den not far in the distance. Rain, she wondered, looking up. It had been raining for the last leg of their journey, an odd occurrence in the desert. She looked over at Clay. At least he didn't seem to mind too much. It was probably for the better, with all the SandWings taking cover, they hadn't encountered anyone during the flight.
"Follow me, your majesty," Acacia called back as she swooped down. The walled city was quickly approaching, and Sunny could see a gate in the distance. Behind that, mist obscured the rest of the city's crumbling stone houses and soaked tents. Even if it early morning, the downpour still cast the city in shadow.
"Your majesty," Sunny sighed. She didn't deserve that title. She'd lost the throne that her mother had worked so hard to rebuild in weeks.
"Sunny, don't worry," Clay said, trying to offer her comfort. "It'll turn out alright. We have friends in the Scorpion Den, we'll be safe here."
"And you still have Six-Claws's army," Acacia quickly pointed out. "Aloe doesn't stand a chance."
Sunny shook her head. Acacia had been such a help the last few days, even if Sunny had barely known the palace guard. Acacia was right, of course. Aloe's plan had failed — even if she'd taken the palace, her troops were vastly outnumbered by those still loyal to Sunny. Sunny had been her goal, and she'd failed. But that wasn't the problem.
"I don't want more dragons to die for me," Sunny sulked. "Armadillo, Creosote . . ." How many more would die before this was over? And for what? Sunny wasn't her mother, and never would be. She couldn't lead the Sand Kingdom.
The three landed by one of the Scorpion Den's gates, their claws sinking into wet sand. They'd have to finish this conversation later, but it wasn't like the outcome would change from the last fifty times they'd had it.
"Wait, why are we going through a gate?" Clay asked Acacia, slightly alarmed. "I thought we wanted to keep a low profile."
"Don't worry," Acacia assured him, shaking water from her wings. "No one has guarded these gates in years. Not since the Outclaws left."
"Left?" Sunny asked, confused. "Aren't we trying to find Kudu and the rest of the Outclaws?" She looked up at the wall, tall gates rising above her. Drops of water fell into her eyes, and she looked away. It was nothing like when she'd first come, following the three NightWings that had tried to kidnap her.
"Well, yeah, Kudu's Outclaws are still around," Acacia explained, "but they're not — not the same as Queen Thorn's. She brought the most of the Outclaws to her to the palace, and the few who stayed behind lost most of their members and power. Vulture and his Talons of Power came out of the shadows and took over for a while, but after his and Cobra's deaths, they fell back too."
Acacia glanced back at the attentive Sunny, rain dripping from her horns. "Not to criticize your mother's decisions or anything," she continued, "but it really took a toll on the Scorpion Den. The Outclaws and Talons are still around, but the city's kinda fallen into chaos. There's a few more factions now, constantly fighting with each other. It's why I left for the north in the first place." The SandWing's eyes went up to the top of the wall. "So yeah. No guards."
The three walked under the gate, the cover giving them but a few seconds of relief from the rain. Sure enough, there were no guards. Stalls lined the street, many of them partly collapsed from the rain. Sunny carefully stepped over a river of muck and trash, holding her breath at the reek of sewage. The smell seemed even worse than the last time she'd been here.
As the three walked on, Sunny's eyes caught on a two pairs of black eyes beneath a soaked cloth. Two dragonets, huddling together for warmth in the rain. As the three passed, small claws quickly scrambled to pull the cloth down over their snouts. If they'd recognized Sunny as their queen, they didn't show it.
Sunny had thought that places like this no longer existed in the Sand Kingdom under Queen Thorn's rule. Was she wrong? Why had the Scorpion Den been so neglected? She sighed. She supposed that ruling a kingdom was far more difficult than ruling a single city. Sunny herself could barely rule a school; she had no grounds to criticize her late mother.
"This way!" Acacia called, turning off the main road. "The Outclaws lost control of the oasis after Queen Thorn left, so they've had to move. The oasis itself changes talons every so often, last I heard it the Stingers were in charge of it, but who knows.
Sunny ducked under a soaked canopy, shaking her wings off. She shivered as the rain chilled her scales. She knew from her meeting with Glory that most of Pyrrhia had been in a drought since she'd taken the throne. If the rain wasn't just focused on the Sand Kingdom, hopefully her worries were quelled. Assuming she'd made it back to the rainforest safely.
The three walked out from under the canopy, back into the pouring rain. Crumbling stone walls rose up from either side of them, enveloping the three in the narrow alleyway. Acacia's barbed tail waggled up and down directly in front of Sunny's snout, water dripping from it. Hopefully the Outclaws would have somewhere drier than tents for them to get their much-needed sleep.
"Stop right there!" The voice of a dragon rang out through the rain, making Sunny jump. Acacia stopped in her tracks, causing Sunny to back up so not to run into her barb. Clay bumped into Sunny.
Sunny peered around Acacia's wings, trying to see what was happening. The alleyway ended right in front of her, opening out into a larger street. Flooded water rushed down the broken cobble, loose stones and small trinkets stuck in the brown flow. Four SandWings stood on the same side as the three, blocking Acacia's path. Sunny's gaze landed on one holding a spear, the pointed tip almost up to Acacia's neck.
Acacia nervously took a step back towards the alleyway. "We're not looking for a fight," she whispered, keeping her barbed tail tucked behind her. "This is Outclaws territory, right?"
"Not anymore," the SandWing with the spear hissed, her tail swishing back and forth. "The Bloodhatched own this road now."
"The Bloodhatched?" Acacia asked, unsure.
"Yeah!" one of the SandWings in the back called out. "We're the next-and-coming thing! B-L-U-D-H-A-C-H-E-D! That means —"
"Shut up," the first SandWing snarled at him. She turned to Acacia and gave her a sniff, then peered behind her, squinting at Sunny and Clay. Sunny tensed up. If they recognized her, what would they do?
"Whatcha doing with a MudWing?" the SandWing snorted as she saw Clay in the back. "Anyways, you all are trespassing on Bloodhatched territory. You can't do that." She twitched her tail, and the three SandWings behind her raised their barbs, baring their teeth.
"We're sorry!" Sunny blurted out as the SandWing twisted her spear. "We didn't mean to trespass. We didn't know this was your territory!"
The SandWing tsked and twisted her tail again. Sunny winced as she prepared for an attack, but the three backed off.
"I get it," the SandWing with the spear yawned, twirling her spear in a circle. "It's all cold and wet, and you wanted to get back to whatever dump you live in real quick. So you think that a quick shortcut through Bloodhatched territory wouldn't do you harm. So, tell you what? We'll all turn our heads and forget about this, so long as you give something in return."
Something in return? Sunny wondered. Did she want some sort of favor?
Acacia slowly moved her paw to a drawstring pouch on her side, and offered it out to the SandWing. The SandWing grinned and eagerly accepted the pouch. She opened it up spilling out its contents into her paw. Shimmering coins.
"That's it?" the SandWing snorted at the measly bribe. "Seriously?"
"We were in a rush," Acacia pleaded.
The SandWing narrowed her eyes. "Inspect the other two," she ordered. "See if they've got anything worthwhile." She grabbed Acacia and pulled her from the alleyway, onto the street.
Sunny walked forward, trying to keep her head low as the SandWings examined her. She hadn't had time to grab anything before leaving the palace.
"Ooh! Look at that!" one of the SandWings shouted, pointing a talon at Sunny's neck. "How much do you think that'll sell for?"
Sunny glanced down. She'd hidden the fake Eye of Onyx, but had forgotten that she was wearing the moonstone pendant that had belonged to Queen Thorn. "Please let me keep it," she whimpered, placing a paw over it. "It belonged to my mother."
"Liar," the SandWing growled. "I've seen that before! Thorn used to wear it around. Where'd you get it? Did you steal it from the palace?"
"Wait just a sec," another one of them said, "she's got no barb. And she's with a MudWing."
"So?" the other snorted. "My cousin don't have a barb. He got it torn off by Burn herself in the war."
"Yeah, but you know who doesn't have a barb? Queen Sunny doesn't have a barb. Look, she matches the posters!"
Sunny backed up, wincing. She'd been found out. "Are you sure?" she shakily tried to lie. "Why would Queen Sunny be here?"
"You're right," the speared SandWing whispered, letting go of Acacia. "I think this is Queen Sunny."
"I'll bet Rattlesnake would pay a bunch to get her claws on this one," one of the SandWings mused.
"What?" another one said, his claws shaking. "No! She's the queen! We can't do that. What if she orders us executed? We'd all be dead!"
"Lizard-brained," the speared SandWing hissed. "She doesn't have any power here. Especially not if Aloe's got the palace now. But we're not selling her to Rattlesnake. I don't make deals with that oil-scaled brat."
"But we'd get rich!" the other SandWing argued. "What else are we gonna do with her? Throw her in a cell? How long before someone finds out and we all get slaughtered?"
Sunny started to back away from the two as the continued arguing, but she felt the warmth of another one of the SandWings against her side, preventing her escape. She had to find a way out. Maybe she could offer them something after all?
"I can help you if you let me go," Sunny suggested. "If you want money, I've got it."
The speared SandWing thought about this for a moment, staring at Sunny. "If the rumors are true, you don't have access to the treasury anymore. If we let you go, you could just send a bunch of guards and get us all beheaded."
"What?" Sunny asked. "No! I wouldn't do that! I don't kill dragons!"
Another one of the SandWings laughed. "A queen who doesn't kill? What is Pyrrhia coming to?"
"We're Dragonets of Destiny," Clay quickly spoke up. "We stopped the war. You can trust us."
The speared SandWing looked curiously at Clay. "Dragonets of Destiny, huh? How much do you think you'll sell for? Probably not so much, now that the war's over, though I heard Queen Scarlet would give a fortune to get her talons on you."
Suddenly, the sound of wingbeats punctured the downpour. The shadows of dragons appeared through the mists across the road. Seven SandWings broke through the fog, Kudu's stern glare at the front.
"Outclaws!" the spread SandWing yelled upon seeing the approachers. "Quick, scram!"
The SandWing behind Sunny shoved her aside, running past Clay into the alleyway. The other three all took off in various directions, the speared SandWing flapping as she flew into the mists.
Kudu landed by Acacia and Sunny, keeping her tail from dipping into the murky stream that had enveloped the road. She looked much like how Sunny had seen her last. Her eyes crusted and narrowed from age, Kudu towered over the three. Her eyes focused on Sunny, water dripping from her scales, her gaze commanding the young queen to meet hers. Out of the corner of her eyes, Sunny saw a gold band around Kudu's foreleg, two dragons engraved on it, just like the one Thorn had occasionally worn.
"So you've come to the Scorpion Den," Kudu growled, her voice rumbling. "And the first thing you do is get caught by ruffians."
"Kudu, don't be harsh," a voice from behind her said. A second SandWing landed by Kudu, a head-height beneath her. He smiled, rolling his eyes. "Her majesty must have travelled quite a long way to grace us with her presence."
"Her majesty," Kudu repeated with a sneer. "She's barely older than a dragonet. Had it been Queen Oasis or Thorn, those four would've had their guts scattered across the stones."
"Pyrrhia could really use a few more queens that don't like gut-smearing," the second SandWing tsked. It was difficult to see in the mist, but Sunny's eyes were drawn to a pale-pink blotch on the left side of the SandWing's neck, where his sandy scales had been discolored by a burn scar. "I'm Cheetah, by the way, Kudu's second. This is Kudu, leader of the Outclaws."
"We've met," Kudu snorted. "Back in the palace. Is it true that Aloe has it now?"
Sunny opened her mouth to reply, but Kudu cut her off before she could answer.
"Of course it's true," Kudu sniped. "You wouldn't be here if it weren't. You need my help, is that it?"
Sunny sighed. "Yes, please," she replied. She didn't particularly like asking this dragon for things, but it was what she had to do right now. It wasn't just her who was at stake, the entire kingdom was.
"Hmph, the Queen of the SandWings, begging me for help," Kudu said, a smirk showing through her pout. "And why should I give it to you? Did Queen Thorn send help when Vulture took over the oasis? I don't remember her lifting her claws."
If Kudu wasn't going to help in the first place, why had Armadillo sent us here? Sunny wondered. "Please, Kudu," Sunny grovelled.
Kudu tapped her claws, pretending to think about it. "Alright," she finally replied. "I'm not going to send my dragons to help you get your throne back. Six-Claws is still in charge of the royal forces, isn't he? He's should be enough. But I'll let you stay with the Outclaws if you want, and provide you protection. In return, I want you to promise me you'll get the Outclaws back in charge of the Scorpion Den once you're rid of Aloe."
Sunny nodded. It wasn't as if she had much other choice, did she? And if she did somehow become queen again, that was at least one good thing she could do with that power.
"Good, then let's get to it. Cheetah, do we have a place for these three to stay?"
"We've got quite a few empty rooms given all the dragons you've scared off recently," Cheetah replied with a smile. "It should be plenty space for these three."
"Lead them there," Kudu ordered. "I'm continuing the patrol. I want those Bloodbath ruffians off our territory for good."
Cheetah bowed his head while Kudu took off into the rain, the other Outclaws following behind her. "This way, your majesty. Come quickly, I'm sure you want to be out of the storm."
Cheetah turned around and spread open his wings, spraying water onto the soaked dragons behind him. With a few flaps, he took off, crossing over the river of muck. Sunny quickly joined him in flight, trying to keep up with the SandWing before he disappeared entirely into the mist.
Clay and Acacia followed behind Sunny, into the Outclaws' section of the Scorpion Den. The four stayed low, barely skimming over cracking sandstone roofs, the alleyways beneath far too thin to fly through. Sunny's eyes didn't catch on a single pair of scales during the short flight. No SandWing wanted to be out during the storm. Yet, the city was far from deserted. Every so often, Sunny would notice small flickers of flame within the window-frames, indicating that there were dragons at home.
Finally, the four landed by what Sunny presumed to be the Outclaws' current base. A small block of the town, set apart from the rest by the bright flames within almost every hole to the inside that hadn't been boarded up. It was almost like a bright beacon to the rest of the city. The Outclaws at least knew they had safety in numbers, and weren't afraid of robbers or attackers in the middle of the night.
Cheetah led the three to the compound's entrance, a small guarded archway, flanked by stout towers to each side. Two spear-wielding SandWings at the front scanned the visitors as they walked inside, but didn't bother to apprehend them. If either recognized Queen Sunny, they didn't acknowledge it.
The inside of the compound was far less spectacular than the SandWing palace. The four entered into an open-air courtyard, which the rain had turned into a murky pond. Cheetah headed towards the right side, splashing through the water as he headed to a door on the other side of the water. Sunny cringed as she lifted her tail up, and walked into the cold puddle, grime sneaking between her scales. It wasn't like she wasn't already soaked. At least Clay would enjoy it.
The water wasn't very deep, reaching about halfway up to Sunny's underbelly. When she finally reached the other side, Cheetah already had the door open. He led the three into a damp hallway, dim torchlight spread throughout. Many of the glass-less windows had been boarded up, but water still crept in through the wet wood. He took them up a small staircase, and into a small room.
"Well, here's your new home," Cheetah smiled. "It's not quite as comfy as the palace, but it's dry. Better than the ones with windows."
"It's cozy," Acacia frowned.
Cozy it was. More of a closet than a room, it seemed barely large enough for just one dragon to sleep in. Nothing like the fluffy mattresses of the palace, the floor was just cold stone.
"It's fine," Sunny replied with a smile. She'd slept on a cavern floor for the first six years of her life, this wasn't worse than that.
"Yeah, we don't get visiting queens that often," Cheetah chuckled. "Sorry about Kudu's behavior, by the way. She's normally not quite that bad."
"What was with that?" Clay asked. "It seems like she doesn't like Sunny very much."
"You don't know?" Cheetah replied, slightly surprised. He gave Acacia a glance.
"I told them a little bit on the way here," Acacia said quietly. "But it's been a while since I've been back to the Scorpion Den."
Cheetah nodded. "It's not really you she doesn't like," he told Sunny. "It's your mother. She left the Scorpion Den and took basically all the Outclaws north to the palace. The few who remained had lost their leader and their support. After Thorn left, Kudu was pretty far down the chain of command, but rallied up the leftover Outclaws. It was difficult, though. Since Thorn hadn't ever officially given up leadership of the Outclaws, not everyone really thought Kudu was the true leader. She petitioned Queen Thorn a number of times to get full control, but Thorn refused to acknowledge her. She only just got official leadership, after Armadillo, who was next in succession after Thorn, gave it to her. Although I'm pretty sure he just wanted to get her off his scales, haha."
"What's she got against Sunny, then?" Clay frowned. "She isn't involved in the Outclaws."
"Dunno," Cheetah said, shuffling his wings. "I think she blames Sunny for Thorn leaving, and was never a fan of Thorn spending so much time and resources looking for Sunny. Don't get me wrong though, Kudu's not a horrible dragon, just not the best leader."
Cheetah cranked his neck behind his wings, looking towards the hallway. "Sorry to cut this short, but I should probably get back to Kudu myself. I hope you sleep well, your flight must have been exhausting."
"Thank you," Sunny replied, lowering her head respectfully.
"It's my honor to host our queen," Cheetah replied with a grin. "I'll see you tomorrow; I'll make sure to show you our mess hall." He waved a paw goodbye as he turned around in the cramped corridor, barbed tail swishing as he left the three in their damp sleeping chambers.
Chapter 2Midnight paced up and down the ruined stone aisle. The pavement was cracked and full of holes, small weeds sneaking out wherever they could, hungry for sunlight and water. The latter at least was in plenty. Crosswinds had seen an exorbitant amount of rain in the past few weeks, almost unheard of so close to the Sand Kingdom. The roof of the crumbling temple that Ecru had made her home wasn't quite up to the non-existent building code, and the broken glass windows let in the cold and wind. Under the parts of the roof that still remained, water had flooded down the floor, forming puddles almost wherever one stepped. The only part of the temple that Ecru had managed to keep at least moderately dry were the scrollracks behind the altar. The racks themselves stank of rotting wood, but at least the scrolls seemed to have survived.
At first, Midnight had been excited for the rain. She was half-SeaWing, after all. They didn't get much rain in Crosswinds, so the extra water had made for quite an exciting time. More importantly, it meant that Torrent and Slate had succeeded in ending the magical drought, without her help. Or it had ended by coincidence. Either way, Midnight was relieved.
But after a few weeks, the rain was starting to get on Midnight's nerves. What a lousy half-SeaWing she was, getting annoyed at a little bit of water. But it seemed to be slowing down, at least. It wasn't the worst part of the last few weeks, anyways.
One of Midnight's claws suddenly landed between the cracks, getting caught on the underside of a tile. The hybrid yelped as she tripped forward, barely catching herself with her other forepaw, almost slipping on the slick stone. She winced, her talon burning. Carefully, she pulled it out from the crack. No blood. She waggled the talon back and forth. It hurt, but it still moved, the webbing connecting it to her other claws stretching. Midnight sighed. At least it wasn't broken.
"Are you alright?" Ecru called out, worried. She lifted her head up from Gazelle's scales, checking to see that Midnight wasn't hurt. The three silver moons that hung from her right ear shook wildly, as if they'd been agitated. The golden ring where a snake wrapped around itself that hung from her neck bounced against her sandy-brown scales, brushing one of the numerous animal head tattoos on her neck, this one an eagle's head.
"I'm fine," Midnight muttered. "Just stubbed a claw." Her eyes met Ecru's bright amber gaze. One could look past her strangely stocky body shape and curved horns without a second glance, but her odd eyes gave away her MudWing heritage. At least in Crosswinds, a SandWing-MudWing hybrid wasn't too odd an occurrence.
Midnight couldn't say that for herself. A NightWing or SeaWing alone would stand out among any number of SandWings and MudWings, and a dragon with prominent hybrid features from both sides had no chance of remaining inconspicuous. Midnight had learned to ignore the stares, and to snap back at the annoyingly invasive questions. Can you tell me the future? Where are your gills? Why would your parents have made something like you, didn't they know you would never be normal?
Midnight slowly limped over to Ecru and Gazelle. After the incident with Aloe a few weeks ago, Ecru had offered to take the two in. Midnight had felt it was a bit too early for her to move in with Ecru, but she was glad to take up the offer nonetheless. Ecru didn't officially own the temple, of course, but no one else seemed to want to go near it. It had been built over a hundred years ago by a cult, and most dragons tended to stay away. It was already on the outskirts of town, and there were rumors it was haunted.
When Midnight had asked Ecru if the rumors were true, she just shrugged and suggested that if there were angry spirits, they probably wouldn't like trespassers. It was why she always made sure to leave out small offerings of food and incense every day. A bit too superstitious for Midnight's taste. If there were ghosts in the temple, Midnight would've preferred to just get it over with fight them herself. Although, how would one fight a ghost? She'd asked Ecru, who'd mentioned a few ancient rituals involving animus blood, but had suggested that it was far easier to make friends with them. Well, if the ghosts ever got angry, Midnight did have animus blood.
The weeks in the temple had been rough on Midnight, but far worse for Gazelle. Her condition and health had worsened after being moved, and now she couldn't even stand. The elderly SandWing's memory had faded, and had started to call Midnight and Ecru Magma and Erosion, respectively. Midnight was worried, but what could she do? She sighed. She knew exactly what she could do, she just wasn't sure she could bring herself to do it, or for that matter, if she should. Only a few words, and Midnight could heal Gazelle's pain.
Gazelle let out a weak wheeze before resting her head back down. The SandWing's eyes were glazed and unfocused, like she couldn't even see the world in front of her. Ecru placed a paw on Gazelle's neck, feeling it carefully.
"Is she alright?" Midnight asked, a sliver of frantic worry slipping through her voice. She hobbled up the step, shaking her paw. Gazelle might not have been Midnight's blood mother, but the SandWing was the dragon who raised her.
Ecru rested the side of her head right above the burn scar on Gazelle's neck. Slowly, the SandWing breathed in and out. "I don't know," Ecru replied honestly. "Her cough has gotten worse. Maybe she's sick?"
"She can't be sick!" Midnight yelled. The young hybrid clenched her claws, scratching the stone. She winced as she accidentally applied pressure to her stubbed claw. She took a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm. "She can't be. She's already in such poor health. If she gets sick, she might . . . I don't know if . . ."
"Midnight," Ecru quietly replied, "it'll be alright."
Midnight shook her head. It was too late, tears were already forming in her eyes. "N-no, it won't," she started to sniffle. "It won't."
Ecru slowly got up, careful not to disturb Gazelle. She placed her head on Midnight's neck, the other hybrid a good head-height taller than her. Her wings fluttered against Midnight's. "It isn't too late."
Ecru felt Midnight's wings tense up, and Midnight pulled back a little from the embrace. Small drops of water were rolling down the dark scales of Midnight's snout. She shook her head. "No," Midnight whispered, her breath starting to speed up, her heart racing at the forbidden thought. "I can't. I can't ever do that." She'd wanted to, so many times. A little bit of magic to save Gazelle. At the cost of her soul.
Midnight looked down at her talons, now trembling from just the thought of using magic. She didn't even know how to do it. Maybe she wasn't even strong enough. She might not be able to even if she wanted to. "But Torrent. He said, he said —"
"It's your choice whether you want to use your magic, not Torrent's," Ecru said. "And if he tries to hurt you for it, we can stop him. You've taken down plenty of bullies before. He's no different."
Midnight shook her head again. Using her magic was off-limits. "I can't," she fret. "You know the legends. I'll lose my soul like every other animus. The only way I can remain safe, remain sane, is if I don't do it."
"That's not certain," Ecru replied. "There are animuses who haven't turned evil, they're just not as famous as the ones who have. Jerboa, Vine, all the IceWing gifts."
The IceWing gifts. That was right. Maybe if Midnight only used her magic just this once, it would all be fine. Her soul would survive.
"Maybe," Midnight whispered, her heart thudding against her chest. Could she actually do it? What would it feel like? If she did it, would she feel a piece of her soul ripped out from her? Right now, she was mostly terrified, but a small feeling tugged at the back of her head. Excitement. "What if I hurt you? What if I hurt Gazelle?"
Ecru thought about it a moment. "I don't know," she responded honestly. "Right now, I can't imagine you ever wanting to really hurt me, but . . . it's a risk."
Midnight looked down at her talons again. She could help Gazelle, but what if it only meant that she killed Gazelle and Ecru in the future, and destroyed herself? That couldn't be worth it. How likely would that be? What kind of monster would her magic make from her?
Ecru placed her wing around Midnight again, seeing her indecision. "Even so, it can't be right to leave a dragon in pain when you can help them. Even if you have to risk yourself."
"But I'm risking you."
Ecru shook her head. "No. I'm ready to take that risk. I know how much Gazelle means to you, and I want her better again. But I don't want try and force you to use your magic. It's your choice. It's a big choice. What you do, it'll affect you, me, Gazelle. Maybe all of Pyrrhia. But I believe in you. If you affect Pyrrhia, however you do it, I think it'll be for the better."
Midnight turned to look at Gazelle. The elderly SandWing lay almost still on the ground, her belly barely lifting from her shallow breath. Midnight couldn't just let her die. Not if she could do something to stop it. If she started to lose her soul, she'd just have to live with the consequences and bear it. She took a deep breath, and stepped up closer to Gazelle, staring down at her adopted mother.
"Alright," Midnight finally said. "I'll do it." She stared down at Gazelle, squeezing her eyes close, trying to imagine Gazelle healthy and alert again. A dragon that Midnight could depend on, who could protect Midnight instead of a dragon needing to be protected.
Midnight opened an eye. Gazelle seemed to be in roughly the same state as before. "It didn't work," she whispered. She glanced back towards Ecru. "She didn't heal? What if Torrent was wrong? What if I'm not an animus after all?"
"You can't just think about something happening," Ecru gently reminded Midnight. "I think animuses normally have to say something, and have to choose an object to enchant."
"Hmm," Midnight replied. Even if she put up appearances in front of her father, she had spent so long worrying about her magic that she didn't actually know how it worked. She'd avoided reading any scrolls discussing the details, afraid that she'd become too curious. Now that the time had arisen, she didn't actually know what to do. "I think you know better than me what to do. You've read some of Torrent's scrolls, right? Can you try guiding me through it?"
Ecru nodded. "I can try. First, you need to find what you're going to enchant and choose the spell."
Midnight looked around the ruined temple, before her eyes landed on Ecru's snake necklace. "What about that?" she asked, pointing to it. "Or your earrings."
Ecru looked slightly squeamish at the thought. "Er, that's probably not the best idea," she quickly replied. "An enchantment could disturb the sanctity of it. It's a bit visible anyways, and it would be easy for it to fall into the wrong claws." She pondered this for a moment. "Ooh, I have an idea!"
Ecru quickly walked behind the altar, to the scroll cases. Her paws immediately went to work, digging through the scrolls to find what she was looking for. After pulling out the right scroll, she grabbed a small pot of ink before returning to Midnight's side. Careful to keep it on a patch of dry floor, the hybrid rolled it open.
Midnight looked down to the scroll, expecting to find some sort of instruction manual. She frowned as her eyes quickly scanned over the parchment. "It's blank."
Ecru nodded. "It is for now. But I figure it'll be safer this way. Everyone expects cursed jewelry, but no one expects a cursed scroll!" She poked her claw into the ink and started to write.
"I'd prefer not to call it cursed," Midnight grimaced. "But that sounds good." Midnight looked back at the scroll once Ecru had moved her talon away. "Cindime Dybo Ndmi. Three moons, what's that supposed to mean?"
"It's code," Ecru replied. "I just switched the syllables around in each word. Medicine, Body, Mind. It's so that no one else knows what it does."
"Seems a little overkill," Midnight said. "Alright, what now?"
"You have to say that you're enchanting it, and what you're wanting it to do." Ecru noticed Midnight opening her mouth, ready to speak. "Wait. You have to word what you say carefully. You need it to heal both the body and mind, but also have to choose how it activates. I'd suggest making it so that the words have to be read aloud by a dragon holding the scroll."
Midnight nodded, mulling over the exact phrasing she wanted to use. "Okay, anything else?"
"I think you'll feel really tired afterwards, especially since it's your first time. Are you sure you're ready?"
Midnight winced. "I'm don't know," she replied. "I don't know what it will feel like. Will it hurt if my soul is destroyed?"
Ecru closed her eyes. "I don't know. It sounds bad, but not in a painful way. More in a cold way. Magic is a lot of responsibility. You have to only use it for good, and choose who gets to reap its benefits. You're sure?"
"I don't think I'll ever be," Midnight gulped. She stared down at the scroll, ink still drying. "Okay. Let's get this over with."
Ecru walked over to Midnight, placing a wing over her. Rain pattered on the broken roof, echoing through the abandoned cathedral. What if something goes wrong? Midnight wondered. What if I accidentally hurt Ecru?
Ecru placed her paw in Midnight's and slowly brought it to the scroll. "You can do this."
Midnight's talons trembled. Her first spell. The start of her descent into evil and darkness. She hadn't been strong enough. She'd given in to it. "Okay," she whispered. "I enchan- I enchant this scroll so that if someone reads the words written here on it while holding the scroll, the dragon they are looking at is healed, both their flesh and their mind." There were so many ways that could go wrong. But Midnight just had to hope.
Ecru looked over to Midnight after she'd said the enchantment. Had it worked? "Are you alright?"
Midnight frowned. "Yeah. I think so. That wasn't so bad." She glanced to look at Ecru and blinked a few times before promptly collapsing against Ecru's side.
"Eek!" Ecru responded, putting out a paw and wing to catch Midnight. Hugging her close, Ecru gently set Midnight down on the ground. She gave the young a prod with her snout. Midnight didn't move.
Ecru put a paw on Midnight's chest. She was still breathing normally. That was a relief. She turned to the scroll, lifting it up in her talons, and staring at the words. It didn't look particularly different. Maybe it was just a trick of Ecru's imagination, but it seemed heavier. If Midnight had gotten tired from the enchantment, did that mean it had worked? There was only one way to find out.
Ecru turned to Gazelle, carefully resting her tail over the collapsed Midnight. She hadn't ever used animus magic before. She didn't think that using an enchantment would compromise her soul, but how could she know?
"Moons above, please protect Midnight and I from the cold and darkness of magic." Ecru locked her eyes on Gazelle's shaking body. That's what the spell needed to work, right? She took in a deep breath.
"Cindime Dybo Ndmi."
Chapter 3"C'mon Tiger! You look as scared as a scavenger right now!"
Tiger shivered as she stepped through the charred rainforest, crisps of leaves crackling under her paws. Skytaker wasn't wrong, she was scared. "There's nothing wrong with being scared," she justified herself. "Fear is a natural chemical reaction that keeps dragons alive."
"Scaredy-sloth," Skytaker teased. The hybrid turned around, tauntingly sticking their tongue out at the RainWing as they walked backwards. Tiger rolled her eyes.
Skytaker turned back around, before a sudden huge figure popped out at them out of the corner of their eyes. The hybrid yelped and leaped away, landing in a pile of grey ash. Wafts of the powder were kicked up by Skytaker's landing, covering the normally red-and-black scales of the hybrid with grey ash.
They quickly jumped up, talons out, ready to face their attacker. The hybrid swiped a paw, only to feel it scratch the bark of a tree. When the clouds of ash cleared away, there was no dragon in sight. Only the charred remains of the rainforest.
Tiger rolled her eyes and stifled a laugh. Skytaker glared at the orange and black-striped RainWing, before letting out a small sneeze.
"See?" Tiger responded. "Natural chemical response."
"I wasn't scared," Skytaker growled. "See? If the tree had been a dragon, it would've been disemboweled." Skytaker pointed a wing at a few claw marks on the tree.
"Shouldn't let trees sneak up on you in the future," Tiger suggested. She glanced up as a few sprinkles of rain fell on her snout. The drought had stopped right after the IceWings had set fire to the rainforest, and it had rained for weeks straight. Now, it had slowed to just a small sprinkle. It was good for the regrowth of the forest. Small hints of green saplings were sneaking out between Tiger's talons.
"It's eerie," Tiger muttered. "The rainforest is so dead and quiet. I can't believe it's the same place I grew up in."
"It'll grow back eventually, right?" Skytaker asked. "Look, I can see little plants and all. And I thought I saw a bird earlier."
"Yeah," Tiger sighed. "It'll grow back, eventually." She noticed that Skytaker was already walking onwards, past the tree they'd hit. "Wait, maybe we should turn back."
"It's fine," Skytaker dismissed Tiger's concerns. "There's no one else around here, see?"
"What if we're caught by a professor?" Tiger asked nervously. "We're not supposed to leave the academy by ourselves. We could get suspended! Or even worse, an IceWing soldier? We'd be captured or killed!"
"Pshaw," Skytaker snorted, waving a wing to brush away some of the ash. "If we run into an IceWing, I'll just fight them. Ooh, or maybe you can use some of the venom I've heard so much about! I'd love to see an IceWing's face get melted."
Tiger almost gagged at the thought. "C'mon, this place is still dangerous."
Skytaker shook their head, and brushed off a bit off ash from their conch-shell earring. "Nope. Remember, you lost the bet. You've gotta come with me."
Tiger glowered. It had been a foolish thing to do, but Skytaker wanted to play Queens and Generals with real stakes. Tiger had been sure she could beat the hybrid this time. She'd kept a journal with all of Skytaker's tactics from previous games, and had figured out a response to each of them. Skytaker, of course, had done something new and unexpected. And had won. Now Tiger was stuck exploring the charred rainforest with this brazen dragonet who didn't even care that they could get suspended.
"Anyways, how would they even suspend us?" Skytaker asked, tail swishing as they walked further into the forest, Tiger hurrying to catch up with them. "I've got nowhere else to go, and you don't even know where the RainWings are all hiding."
"By kicking us out and keeping us from coming back," Tiger responded. "I'd have to survive. Outside Jade Mountain. On my own."
"What, I wouldn't be with you?" Skytaker asked.
"You would be the one who would have gotten me suspended in the first place," Tiger snorted. "Anyways, I'd go looking for the rest of the RainWings, and I don't want you to scare them off."
"Hmph," Skytaker said, dipping their tail in ash. "Well, I think they should all stop hiding. They could totally get rid of the IceWings if they knew how to fight. All of them could just turn invisible, sneak up on the IceWings, and fire their venom away. Hey, maybe if you find them you could bring me to them! I'm good enough at Queens and Generals, I bet I could help them win."
"Playing Queens and Generals is far different from a real war," Tiger warned the hybrid. Still, she didn't doubt Skytaker's skills. If they cared enough to put their mind to it, Skytaker could be a frightening strategist. If they were just a little more mature and had some proper general training, Tiger would almost feel sorry for the IceWings. Almost sorry. She had little sympathy for the dragons who had burned down her home. For Queen Blackice, who'd murdered their beloved Queen Glory and paraded her head on a pike for all to see.
"Ugh, I've been so antsy recently," Skytaker said, stretching their claws. "Battle training has been so boring, and I hate that we're not even allowed to hunt outside the mountain anymore."
"There's good reason for that," Tiger replied. "Peril and Anemone scared off the IceWings, but they could still be around here." She scanned around the charred forest, as if expecting an IceWing to jump out at her at any moment.
"Nah, not here," Skytaker replied. "What would be the point? They know Jade Mountain is off-limits. Queen Blackice flew away with her tail between her legs."
"Queen Blackice wasn't at the battle," Tiger reminded them. "If you're antsy, you should try finding a hobby. I've been helping Mastermind with research a lot recently."
Skytaker snorted in disdain. "Why do you even hang out with that creep?" they asked. "He killed and tortured RainWings just like you."
"He said he was very sorry, and that he didn't realize he was hurting them," Tiger responded.
"Uh-huh," Skytaker skeptically replied, "I wonder what Kinkajou would think of that."
"I doubt Kinkajou thinks much at all," Tiger snapped back. "She can barely read."
"She's smarter than she lets on," Skytaker responded. "Pretty devious too. I think her f — hey, did you hear that?"
Tiger turned around. "Pawsteps?" she asked. She listened closer, trying to pinpoint where the sound had come from. A small hill not very far from the two. She squinted, staring up at it. Had they been followed?
Suddenly, a loud crash sounded through the rainforest, followed by the sound of a yelling dragon. White scales suddenly rolled down the hill, as an IceWing fell head over tail. At the bottom, the IceWing smashed into a pile of ash. Tiger coughed and turned her head away from the cloud rising up.
When the cloud cleared, Skytaker and Tiger saw a young IceWing, scales now more an ashen-grey than white, shaking as he got on all fours. Skytaker rolled their eyes. "Ermine, what are you doing here?"
The small IceWing flapped his wings, trying to dust himself off from the ash. He glared at Skytaker. "I should ask you what you're doing here. You know you're not supposed to leave the academy by yourself! And especially not going into the rainforest! You're not trying to defect to Queen Blackice, are you?"
Tiger sighed. She was just going to let Skytaker deal with the IceWing.
"Why would I defect to her?" Skytaker laughed. "If you haven't noticed, I'm a hybrid, and Tiger's a RainWing. We'd be killed or enslaved if we tried. We're just here on a walk. Being stuck in the caves gets so boring."
Ermine stuck his snout into the sky with a indignant snort. "Hmph! I don't believe you! You're up to something, I know it!"
Skytaker shook their head. "Fine. Don't believe me. It's your loss. C'mon Tiger, let's go a bit further. At least until Ermine is out of earshot." The hybrid started to walk away, Tiger behind them.
"You know I'm not gonna just let you go like that!" Ermine hissed, scampering behind Skytaker. "You're not supposed to leave the academy. That's breaking the rules. Going into the rainforest is super-dangerous, and I'm going to tell the teachers what you did."
Skytaker suddenly stopped and whipped around, causing Ermine to crash into them with a squeal. Before the IceWing could jump back, Skytaker grabbed one of Ermine's horns and brought it to the ground, twisting Ermine's head and causing him to fall to the ash-laden forest floor.
The hybrid placed their other forepaw on Ermine's exposed belly, stretching out their claws so that they poked into the IceWing's sensitive underbelly. Ermine squirmed, terror in his eyes as Skytaker lowered their head, baring their teeth.
"You're not gonna tell any of the teachers that we were here, you got it?" Skytaker threatened, running their talons along Ermine's scales. "Or else."
Ermine vigorously nodded, cowed into submission. Skytaker blew a puff of smoke into Ermine's snout before letting him up. The IceWing meekly started to get back to his fours.
"Skytaker," Tiger scolded the hybrid, "don't threaten him. If you kill him, I'm not going to back you up."
"Relax, I'm not gonna kill him," Skytaker laughed. They turned to Ermine to a toothy grin. "I'll just play with him a little bit."
"The whole point of Jade Mountain Academy is teaching dragons how to solve problems without violence," Tiger replied. "It's like you've learned nothing."
"Not my fault," Skytaker yawned, flicking their tail through some ash, spraying it at Ermine. "If I'm not learning, then the teachers just haven't done their job right."
"Teachers can't force you to listen to them," Tiger responded. "Their words can only reach receptive ears."
Skytaker frowned. "Alright," they said, "then if you're so much in love with the mission statement, how would you solve this problem without violence? Go ahead, my ears are receptive."
Tiger turned to Ermine, giving him such a cold stare that the IceWing shivered. "Ermine isn't going to tell on us, because if he did, the teachers would know that he left the academy without permission himself. Isn't that right?"
Ermine winced. He hadn't thought about that. "Yes ma'am," he grumbled.
"See?" Tiger said to Skytaker. "No violence."
"Fine," Skytaker conceded. "That worked this time. I still think my way was easier."
"It might have been easier, but that doesn't make it a better way," Tiger lectured, getting a roll of Skytaker's eyes. "Violence breeds violence. There's a reason Pyrrhia is like it is today, and in order to change our world, we must first change ourselves."
Skytaker sighed. It was like getting a talking to directly from one of the teachers. "Yeah, yeah, sure."
Tiger started walking back towards the academy. Jade Mountain would normally be blocked out by the green canopy of the trees, but now the treetops were spares and charred, undecorated brown and black twigs. Beneath the snowy mountain, the academy would be bustling and thriving.
"I think we've gone far enough," Tiger said, glancing back to see if Skytaker and Ermine were following. "If there are IceWing soldiers around, I don't want to be caught."
As soon as Tiger turned back, her snout suddenly ran up against something hard. The RainWing dragonet let out a squeal as she jumped back. She rubbed her sore snout with a paw, then looked up to see what she had run into, expecting that she'd accidentally hit a tree.
Tiger's jaw dropped as she saw the teal scales of a dragon appear in front of her, familiar emerald green eyes staring down into her own. It took her a few moments to absorb the shock, before she finally came to her senses. She bowed her head to the ground, talons shaking.
"Y-your majesty," Tiger chattered. "You-I didn't realize—"
"Three moons," Skytaker replied as soon as they recognized the RainWing, far less deferent. "Glory? Er, aren't you dead?"
Tiger shook her head. That wasn't possible. Queen Glory couldn't be alive. Her head was on a stake above the IceWing embassy in Possibility. Starflight had at first thought it was magically disguised, but there'd been no sign of Glory since the attack. Sunny's story had checked out. Glory had left the SandWing palace and ran into Queen Blackice's ambush.
"Am I?" Glory asked. Tiger raised her head up to see that Glory's expression was one of mild curiosity.
"Yeah," Skytaker replied, quite confused. "Very dead. Your head is up on a stake, and Seahorse and Torrent confirmed it wasn't a fake."
Glory looked from side to side, between Tiger, Skytaker, then Ermine. "Well, I came back. What of it?" she asked, not seeming to think twice of her reanimation.
As the queen turned it, Tiger caught a glimpse of a something on Glory's neck that she hadn't seen before. A black tattoo, in the shape of a circle. That was odd. Why would Glory have gotten a tattoo?
Tiger shook her head. As curious as she was about Queen Glory's strange tattoo and her survival, Glory was still her queen, dead, alive, or dead-then-alive.
"My sincerest regret for Skytaker's rudeness, your majesty," Tiger profusely apologized. "They meant you no disrespect. We're just quite surprised to se —"
"Shut up," Glory snapped, silencing the RainWing. She glanced up to the night sky. "Three moons," she commented. "The number of moons here is wrong. Where's the fourth?"
"Your majesty, there hasn't been a fourth moon since the Orb in the Sky, three years ago," Tiger quietly explained. She was starting to get worried. How did Glory not know how many moons there were? Had she lost her memory somehow? If she'd somehow been brought back from the dead, that seemed plausible. Assuming that being brought back from the dead was plausible to begin with. Even animus magic couldn't do that.
"Quiet, you stupid dragonet," Glory sighed. "I was asking the hybrid."
"What she said," Skytaker responded, frowning. Calling Tiger stupid seemed awfully out-of-character for Glory. "So, like, how did you come back? Did you fake your death somehow, and this is a super-secret plan to stay hidden while Queen Blackice thinks you're dead? We won't tell."
Glory rolled her eyes. "I'm tired of this wretched place," she said, to no one in particular. "We have what we need for now. Take the dragonets back to the Empress. They might come of use."
"Wait, wha —" Ermine started to say, his eyes wide. He didn't have time to finish his question before slumping to the ground, three sleeping darts in the back of his neck.
Tiger looked around as she suddenly saw invisible RainWings appear from the shadows. She tried to say something, but it was too late. The charred forest around her started to spin, and Tiger fell to the ground as her vision faded to black.