Two SandWings looked up to the sky as a black shadow passed over their heads. One took a step back, tail flicking against the dark gate. She carefully placed a claw to the rusted vulture medallion around her neck. Trouble.
Dragons seemed to fall out from the sky, the winds blasting past the two guards' snouts as they stared. Two dozen SandWings, with even more up still in flight. Not just Outclaws, but royal soldiers. The two guards exchanged glances. Rattlesnake was not going to be pleased.
Queen Sunny stepped out from the crowd, General Six-Claws looming behind her. A golden band on her foreleg glittered in the sunlight.
The small queen stepped up to the two guards, raising her head up to look them in the eyes. If she was scared, she didn't show it. The guards nervously looked back, shifting back and forth.
"I want an audience with Rattlesnake and Sirocco," Sunny demanded. "Now."
One of the guards gulped. The normal routine would have been for one of them to notify Rattlesnake first. But it wasn't like the two of them could stop Sunny from entering, with so many dragons backing her up. The guard suddenly regretted not having taken a different job.
"Well?" Sunny growled. "I'm waiting."
The other guard quickly nodded. "Right this way, your majesty."
Keys rattled, and the gate swung open. Sunny followed the guards, her entourage behind her. She glanced around the decaying palace as she was led through it, cracks in the walls, gemstones peeled off broken statues. Just two years ago, it would have been far more impressive than the SandWing palace, filled to the brin with fabulous treasure and wealth. But Vulture was dead, and everything he'd obtained had been squandered by his grandchildren. Sunny wondered how much they'd sell the palace to her for. She might need a new one after this was done, even if this place needed some heavy remodelling.
When Sunny entered the pavilion, her eyes immediately landed on Qibli's two siblings. Rattlesnake held a live mouse over her mouth, dangling it by its tail as it chittered. Sirocco seemed to be poking at it while his sister swiped at him with her barb. Before she could drop it, her eyes shifted to the entryway, to Sunny and the small army she'd brought with her.
Rattlesnake froze, staring as the cloaked SandWings guarding the two stood up at attention. Sunny quickly judged the numbers. She had three dragons to every one of the Talons of Power, with even more outside, waiting. They were at her mercy, and they knew it.
Rattlesnake let out a yelp as the mouse bit the sensitive scales at the end of her claws, jolting and accidentally flinging it to the side. Sirocco jumped after it as scampered off, trying to catch it, or possibly squish it.
"What is the meaning of this?" Rattlesnake asked cautiously, careful to suppress a growl. She waved a talon as she stood up from the torn pillow she'd been sitting on, and her cloaked guards backed away. "Queen Thorn never interfered in the Scorpion Den's affairs after she left."
"I'm not Queen Thorn," Sunny remarked.
Rattlesnake frowned. "If you're here to enact revenge, or kill us, we won't go down without a fight. Dragons will die. Do you want needless bloodshed?"
Sunny shook her head, smiling. "Are you talking about throwing me in your dungeon and trying to sell me to Aloe? You're far from the first dragon to imprison me, and you'll probably be far from the last. If I killed everyone who did that, I don't think there'd be many queens left. No, I'm not here to destroy the Talons of Power. I want you on my side."
Rattlesnake blinked, opening her mouth. She was quite unsure what to say to that. "You . . . want us on your side?"
"Yes, that is what I just said," Sunny sighed. "You kidnapped me because you thought Aloe was going to reward you, right? Whatever Aloe offered you, I can give you more. The palace has enough treasure to make your compound beautiful again. You can eat better than—" she winced as she Sirocco finally caught the mouse, quickly closing his jaws around it, "—vermin."
Rattlesnake twitched her tail, glancing at the myriad of SandWings behind Sunny. Were they just here to protect the queen, or were they here make her comply? "Grandfather wouldn't stand for us working with you."
"Your grandfather is dead," Sunny coldly answered. "He's not here, so you have to make your own decisions. I want peace in the Sand Kingdom, from Possibility to Darkstalker's Teeth. Our families have been at each others' throats for three generations. Can we put aside our feud, and put the Outclaws and the Talons of Power at peace?"
Rattlesnake grimaced, remaining silent. Sunny was right. But the Talons of Power had almost nothing left but their pride, and with this alliance, even that would be gone.
"Sister, can we do it?" Sirocco asked hopefully. "I want to eat fancy again, and have lots of shinies! Please?"
Rattlesnake sighed, placing two talons to her snout. "Fine," she eventually grumbled. "What do you want?"
"As I said, your support," Queen Sunny answered. "I want the Talons of Power to support me in my upcoming battle against Aloe. Your SandWings are stealthier than my own soldiers."
Rattlesnake glanced behind Sunny's wings. She definitely recognized a few familiar faces in the background, more than just Six-Claws. "You have Outclaws with you, don't you?" she asked. "If you're just looking for assassins, they would be fine."
"That's not all," Sunny continued. "I want some of whatever you used to blow up that warehouse with Kudu."
Rattlesnake scoffed. "So you know about that. It's dangerous stuff," she remarked. "You sure you're really ready to handle it?"
"What's your price?" Sunny asked, unimpressed.
Rattlesnake smirked. "In addition to enough treasure to make this place as glittering as it was two years ago, I want a place on whatever council you choose after you win. Something nice and cushy. And a pardon for both me and my brother."
"Deal," Sunny answered, barely having to think about it. She didn't like having to pay out SandWing treasure to these two, but if that's what it took for her to secure the throne, so be it. She'd have plenty of time to make up for it. And better to have Rattlesnake on her council, where Sunny could keep a close eye on her.
Rattlesnake opened her eyes, slightly taken aback that Sunny had accepted so quickly, without any haggling. Maybe she should've started off with something even more in her favor. "Alright then," she smiled. "I'll show you to my dragonpowder supply. I think you'll be pleased."
Sunny raised up a wing as she followed Rattlesnake, signaling for the rest of the SandWings not to follow her. Whatever Rattlesnake was going to show her, she wasn't sure she wanted the entire Sand Kingdom to know just yet. She continued after Rattlesnake, the young queen, staring at the cracking halls of the palace as Rattlesnake led her down a slanting tunnel once lined with jade and gold.
"Dragonpowder?" Sunny asked, once the two were out of hearing range.
"That's what it's called, the explosive," Rattlesnake explained. "The name came from the scientist we got to make it. After she was exiled from the Mud Kingdom, Vulture picked her up. He hired her, and let her continue the work she'd been doing. The dragonpowder isn't super useful by itself, so he didn't end up using it when he tried to coup your mother, but she recently finished the first fully-working prototype."
"Prototype?" Sunny asked, peeking into one of the open doors down the hallway. It was empty except for a few dusty crates covered in cobwebs.
"You'll see," Rattlesnake grinned. "You made a deal with the right dragons. Over here."
Rattlesnake reached into a pouch on her side, pulling out a huge iron key, and inserted into a lock on a rusty metal door. After fiddling with it for a few moments, she finally managed to get it open, gesturing Sunny in.
Sunny had to take in a small gasp as she took in the entire room. It was larger than the pavilion, a huge cubical expanse, all beneath the surface. A large cloth hung from the ceiling at the back end, separating the room into two pieces. Benches were stacked with crates and beakers, strange twists of iron scattered around so haphazardly Sunny had to be careful not to step on any of them.
A large clang sounded from the back of the room, making Sunny almost jump. Smoke from a forge rose up through a vent in the ceiling, and she spotted a small MudWing with burnt-orange at it, stoking flames as she melted down iron. An iron mask covered her snout as sparks flew all around her.
"We store most of the dragonpowder somewhere else," Rattlesnake replied as she shut the door behind her, "it would be too much of a fire hazard to keep it in here." She looked over to the MudWing. "MALLARD! YOU HAVE A GUEST!"
"I'M BUSY!" the MudWing called back, another clang sounding from the forge.
Rattlesnake sighed. "IT'S QUEEN SUNNY!"
The clanging stopped. Mallard was still for a few moments, before placing the hot iron down, and removing her mask. She squinted. "Queen? Why didn't you say so?"
Sunny glanced over as Mallard hobbled over. The MudWing scientist seemed somewhat worse for wear — her snout and neck were covered in so many burn scars that Sunny wasn't quite sure what was scale and what wasn't, and it looked like she'd lost her sight in one of her eyes. One of her paws had been fully replaced by a rusted iron contraption that seemed to screech and clang whenever she moved. She certainly looked a lot older than Sunny guessed she actually was.
"Your majesty," Mallard said, bowing her head to the ground. "It's an honor to meet you."
"Yes, yes," Rattlesnake scoffed. "Now, go and show her around. We're making a deal with her."
"Of course," Mallard grinned, showing Sunny a few missing teeth. She turned, walking back towards the forge as Sunny followed. "This is my laboratory. Many many years ago, at the start of the War of SandWing Succession, Queen Moorhen commissioned me to help make her weaponry. I have to admit, I got a bit more creative than I intended, and I ended up making the highly explosive dragonpowder that Rattlesnake surely mentioned to you." She wiggled her missing paw, showing the prosthetic off to Sunny. "Highly explosive, see? You know what Dragonflame cactus is?"
"Unfortunately," Sunny frowned. She spotted a dried specimen of the plant at one of the tables. "I was there when Queen Scarlet attacked the Summer Palace with it. We also had someone use it at my academy."
"Magnificent," Mallard nodded. "That's where I got the inspiration from. Early in the war, back when the MudWings had been on Blister's side, the SkyWings used it in an attack on us. That power — I wanted to be able to use it for more. And so, I did! I studied the cacti, and managed to isolate the natural explosives within them. Some old SeaWing chemistry helped me figure out an artificial way to create the dragonpowder, something far more controllable, condensed, and volatile. Unfortunately, I ended up getting banished from the Mud Kingdom. I was so close! All my scrolls! My research! Practically all destroyed!" She tsked. "The war would've ended a years earlier Queen Moorhen kept me around."
"Hm," Sunny noted. She wondered if the NightWings had been involved in her banishment. It had all the familiar signs on it. She decided to hold her tongue.
"So," Mallard continued, "I eventually made my way to the Crosswinds, you see? Where else could I go? And at my lowest moment, Vulture found me. He understood my potential, in a way that Queen Moorhen never did. He gave me a home, and paid me to continue developing the weaponry while supplying me with anything I needed. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to complete things before his death. Maybe things would've been different if I had. Er, not that there's anything wrong with you or your mother, of course! I have to admit, I'm glad I'm going to be working for a queen again! I'm excited to see the first use of the weapon!"
"The weapon?" Sunny asked, slightly confused. "Do you mean there's more than just the powder?"
Mallard chuckled. "Oh, of course. Dragonpowder is just a fancy explosive by itself. But it can be controlled. Sure, you can throw a lit barrel of powder on a wooden house and it'll go up in flames, but the weapon can take down a castle."
"Well," Sunny joylessly replied. "That happens to be exactly what I'm looking for."
Mallard grinned as she led Sunny over to a large lumpy object around the size of Sunny herself, covered in a white cloth stained with black. The MudWing bowed beneath her wings as she stepped to the side of it.
"I present to you, the Iron Dragon," Mallard smiled, a proud glint in her eyes as she lifted off the cloth, revealing a huge black iron barrel fixed to a wooden frame. The MudWing picked up a large iron sphere, larger than two of her paws put together.
Sunny stared at the weapon for a moment, circling around as she examined it. Finally, she reached the barrel. "And this can take down a castle?"
Mallard nodded. "I've tested it myself, outside of the Scorpion Den, of course. No wall can stand in my dragonet's way."
Sunny raised her eyes to see Rattlesnake at the end of the room, another cloth separating off this part of the laboratory from the rest. Rattlesnake grinned as she let loose a blast of fire, and the cloth went up in flame.
Sunny stared at what was beyond the cloth. Dozens more copies of the weapon in front of Sunny were neatly organized, lined up in rows and columns like soldiers, setting out to battle. An army of Iron Dragons.
"After this," Mallard smirked, "warfare on Pyrrhia is going to be changed forever."
Moonlight fell on the SandWing palace, while deep blues the color of SeaWings covered the dawn sky. Queen Sunny stood at a small hill, staring up at the flickering lights in the slit-like windows of the stronghold. Beneath her eyes, SandWings quietly rushed back and forth between the walls, silently as the moons lit their scales. Not just the royal army, but Outclaws and Talons of Power as well, all under Sunny's command. For a moment, Sunny couldn't help but stare at the architectural feat of the palace, large column-like towers peaking, faded murals lining a facade. A symbol of SandWing royalty dating back millenia.
It had taken too long to bring the Iron Dragons here. They'd had to make the final trip under the cover of darkness, but even then, Sunny was uncertain. How many dragons would die if Aloe was prepared for this, and the two armies faced full-on battle? How many dragons would die otherwise?
Sunny tilted her head as two dragons approached her. Rattlesnake and Mallard climbed up the small mound Sunny stood atop, both bowing to their queen.
"It was very wise of you to let the Talons of Power join your side," Rattlesnake remarked, lifting her head back up. "We'll bring you victory."
"I know," Sunny answered. It wasn't losing she was worried about anymore.
"I finished showing your soldiers how to operate the Iron Dragons," Mallard grinned, occasionally stepping from side to side, unable to hide her excitement. "They're not hard to use, just don't stand behind them when they fire."
Sunny nodded. "Mallard, do you want to go somewhere safer for this? The battle will be starting soon."
Mallard scoffed. "And not see the first time my invention is used in battle? Of course not. I've been working on this for decades; I wouldn't miss this moment for the world. I'll just stay back and watch, no need to get my talons dirty."
"Alright," Sunny answered. "Have fun."
Sunny looked down to the the dragons, running around beneath the palace walls, until her eyes caught on the one she'd been looking for. Six-Claws. The sky was already starting to lighten. She needed to talk with him soon.
Sunny slowly walked down to her general, sand sliding beneath her claws. General Six-Claws looked back up as she came into view, giving her a concerned smile.
"Is everything prepared?" Sunny asked him.
Six-Claws nodded. "All of it. The Iron Dragons are in position." He gestured around him. Huge weapons had been placed in a line, iron balls at their side with dragonpowder at the ready. All had been aimed up at the palace, pointed towards the impenetrable walls of the stronghold. "Just like you wanted, this is the least populated side of the palace at the moment. It'll be more difficult for anyone to see us down here, and there'll be less casualties."
Less, but still some, Sunny thought. By giving the order to fire those things, she would be taking lives. "Thanks," she quietly replied. "Even if we are seen, I think we'll be fine. Aloe won't know what they are."
"Probably," Six-Claws remarked. "Though she might get her forces at the ready." He frowned. "Sunny, I'm a bit worried. I think we're relying too much on Rattlesnake. I don't think we can trust her."
"I know we can't trust her," Sunny said. "Qibli told me enough about his siblings. If it looks like we're losing, she's going to turn tail and join Aloe. Which means that we just have to make sure we're winning."
Six-Claws grimaced. He knew Sunny was right, but he still didn't like working with the Talons. He turned back, scanning the stronghold's thick stone walls, his eyes moving up to the top, where a thicker stone roof protected the dragons inside. "It's far more beautiful without the spikes and heads. I'll be sad to see so much damage to it."
"I won't," Sunny stated. "It's a symbol of the old regime. I'm ready to see it go."
Six-Claws squinted at Sunny. Something had changed in her. She was far from the same dragon she'd been when Six-Claws carried the news of her mother's death to her, at Jade Mountain Academy. So much had happened to her since then.
"It's almost sunrise," Sunny stated, giving Six-Claws a funny look, unsure why he was staring at her. "I think it's time."
Six-Claws nodded, and the two walked back up the hill, meeting Rattlesnake and Mallard at the top. Sunny lifted her head up as she stepped in front of the three, SandWings below all looking up to her. Their queen.
"You ready for this?" Rattlesnake grinned, giving one of Sunny's hindlegs a poke with a talon. Sunny didn't flinch. "This is going to be so exciting. We're making history here, you know? We're gonna be in the scrolls for this."
"They're all ready," General Six-Claws nervously told Sunny. "They'll fire on your signal. Just give the word."
Sunny stared at the palace. Was Aloe in there, watching? What about her mother, encased in stone?
Mallard grinned giddily, eyes wide open as the lightening sky caused her creations to glimmer. "Queen Moorhen is going to regret ever letting me go. Today, we're bringing in a new age for dragons, for Pyrrhia. With this battle, the Age of Iron begins."
The sun rose up in the east. Pink hues fell down from the sunrise, coloring the walls of the ancient SandWing palace. A beam of sunlight fell on Sunny's army, the Iron Dragons black against the golden sand of the desert. The golden bracelet of the Outclaws glinted against Sunny's golden scales. This would be the last time the sun rose over the SandWing stronghold.
Queen Sunny took in a deep breath as she made her decision.
"FIRE!"
Chapter 54"Well," the Empress laughed. "I have to admit, you did a really good job, a lot better than I expected."
She looked at each of the three in turn. Aurora glared back, still as a statue with the Empress's vines wrapping around her legs, her jaws open as one wriggled down her throat. The unconscious Midnight let out a groggy muttering in her sleep, head down on the sand. Tiger moved from side to side, attempting to get out of Glory's tight grasp.
Inferno felt her claws shake as the vines pulled against her. Aurora had failed. All of them had failed. The Empress had won.
"I don't know how you got back to Pyrrhia," the Empress chuckled, "but you somehow managed to do it! And you fought me! The two of you gave me a good battle, rest easy knowing that. And Tiger! You almost succeeded!"
Tiger's orange and black resting color shifted to red and green. "What are you planning to do to us?" she snarled.
"Nothing," the Empress smiled, shaking her head. "I plan to rewrite this world, and you with it. However, I'll reward you, for your bravery and courage. I think I'll keep you around, instead of taking you out of existence. You won't retain your memories, of course, but don't worry, you'll still be alive."
"You're despicable," Tiger spat. "You're planning to make this world like Antigonia?"
"You've grown feisty," Liliana replied. "But no. Antigonia was a failed experiment. I wasn't creative enough the first time around, and trying to fit my ideals with Trustbreaker didn't work. I wasn't prepared, either. No, this time, I plan to change the dragon and human species entirely. No one will ever want to fight, and everyone will love each other, and obey me with every bone in their body. No starvation, no war, no kingdoms. I'm going to get rid of emotions like hate, fear, and sadness. I'm going to make a utopia, and you should be happy you'll get to be a part of it."
"You're going to take away all free will," Tiger gulped. "That's not right. It's not right, forcing everyone to change like that, controlling them like you controlled Mangrove."
"I know not everyone wants it, but they'll be happier for it," the Empress smiled. "Everyone will be happy in my world, all the time."
Tiger stared. A world where everyone was happy. But if everyone in that world had to be like Mangrove for it to work, forgetting the things that they loved, forgetting themselves, how could that be a good thing?
Inferno raised her head. "It won't work like you want it to," she quietly spoke. "The world you create — it won't be the one you're hoping it will be. It's not that simple."
The Empress shrugged her wings. "That's possible," she acknowledged. "But even if I fail, I'll have the Wishstone. I can rewrite this world as many times as I want to, until it finally works."
"Even if that means destroying everyone on Pyrrhia?" Inferno asked, one final plea.
The Empress's stare grew cold, as she grimaced. "Yes."
She walked forward, until she was eye to eye with Inferno. Glory pulled Tiger away, taking a few steps back from the two. Inferno tensed up as she felt the Empress's talons clutch around her jaws, digging into her scales.
"Ash has held out long enough," Liliana growled. "It's time."
Inferno whimpered as she felt Liliana's talons enter her head, her vision going black as the Empress forced her into Ash's mindscape. When she opened her eyes again, she saw the familiar valley once more.
But this time, it was different. The ground was covered in a layer of soot, the kind river dried up. Smoke and smog filled the air, the peaks in the background cragged and unfriendly. A flash of lightning lit up the dark sky, thunder booming as Inferno looked down, Liliana's hand clenching around her. The giant scavenger's head rose up into the clouds, huge glowing golden eyes staring down, beams of light illuminating the treacherous landscape.
Inferno turned to see the Empress's other hand. A small salmon-scaled dragonet huddled in her fingers, whimpering as he shook. Burn scars covered his body, blacks and reds across his distorted scales. He tucked his wings against him as his teeth chattered, the SkyWing's leathery membranes more holes than wing. He tucked his snout beneath his wings, trying desperately to hide under them, even though his eyes poked out from the burnt off parts of his membranes.
Inferno wasn't sure what to think. Ash had lied to her all her life, controlled her. He'd made her anxious and scared, his own fears becoming Inferno's. But he'd also been one of her only friends in the Talons of Peace. When everyone else had despised her and wouldn't talk to her, he comforted her. Whenever Inferno's mother screamed at Inferno, scolding her for how she'd ruined her life and killed everyone in her village, telling Inferno how she was a terrible monster whose only purpose was to destroy, Ash had been the one to tell Inferno that Goat was wrong, and that even if she'd killed her brother, he forgave her, and that death wasn't her destiny.
She gave the whimpering dragonet another look. She pitied him.
"I won't let you take him from me," Inferno snarled into the storm above her, Liliana's eyes shining. "I won't let you control him."
Liliana laughed, her voice booming like thunder, as she pulled her hands apart. Ash screamed, as strands of glowing rope appeared on Ash, one connecting him to each of Liliana's fingers, pulling him into her. A single rope stretched between Inferno and Ash, stretched taut.
Memories started to flash in front of Inferno's visions, and she shook her head. Stop! she wailed. When her eyes opened up again. It was Ink's kind eyes who stared down at her. She paused, taken aback for a moment. Just a memory. He was dead.
She was in the Enclave's jail cell, with Toxin and Ink. Not long before the battle with Calamity. She felt her talons clench. She hadn't really understood what friendship was before she'd met Ink. Her mouth opened, in the memory, just as she was about to tell him about Ash. Then . . .
NODONTTELLHIMDONTTELLHIMABOUTME
Inferno felt her body wrench as Ash's frightened presence took ahold of it. She tried to move, her claws not able to respond. Ash's fear pulsed through her scales, ripping through her as her heart started to pump so fast it might break. Her throat began to tighten up, the airways closing as Inferno tried to speak. Her eyes went wide, her tail whacking back and forth.
"Inferno, what's wrong?" Ink asked.
"She's choking!" Toxin yelled.
Inferno beat her tail from side to side. Just let me tell him! We can trust him!
As she choked, the vision became hazy. When it reappeared again, she was somewhere different. The Crystal Caverns. She saw Slate in front of her, yelling as tears fell from his eyes. His voice seemed muted to Inferno, unable to comprehend the words, just hearing his grief and anger. Toxin whimpered in the background.
"I didn't mean to—" Inferno whispered, before she felt pain jolt through her body, muscles flexing and contracting against her will. She tried to let out another yell, but not even her voice would work.
We're leaving, Ash said. Her body turned slowly, as one of her legs moved forward.
No! Inferno tried to yell back, only able to speak in her head. All she could do was watch as another leg moved. Stop! I have to stay! I have to help them! Toxin is hurt.
You can't do anything to help them. Ash kept walking. It's over. You brought me here. To him. I don't want to ever see him again. I'm not letting you do that.
Inferno blinked again, and the memory changed once more. To Magma's cave. A SkyWing with a spear stood across from her.
"Stop!" Inferno squealed as the SkyWing prodded her with the spear. It touched her scales, the tip harmlessly melting as it prodded her. "Go away! I don't want to hurt you!"
Another SkyWing roared, letting loose a blast of flame on Inferno, as if that would do anything. Inferno felt her talons twinge as Ash's presence beat down on her. Don't hurt them, please! she pleaded. Don't do this!
I won't let them hurt us, Ash snarled. I won't let them. No one will hurt us.
Inferno could do nothing as her wings opened up, stretching out. The two SkyWings reared back, as Inferno leaped forward. All it took was a single swipe of her talons, and an earsplitting scream came out from one of them. Scales had been burnt wherever the talon touched, the wound instantly cauterized. The other SkyWing let out a yell, immediately dropping her spear and rushing back.
Inferno stood over the SkyWing, still whimpering from his burn wounds. Her eyes blazed vivid blue as Ash moved a talon. The SkyWing let out another scream, this one of terror.
Don't kill him, please, please don't kill!
Ash moved Inferno's talon, until it was just a claw-length from the top of the SkyWing's head. The SkyWing's eyes went wide.
Fine.
Ash moved the claw back. The SkyWing took the chance and scrambled to his paws, rushing back away towards the entrance of the cave. Inferno tried to move herself again, before realizing that she still couldn't.
Ash? she asked. What are you doing?
Ash walked forward, until Inferno stood up against a small pool of water. His movements had become less erratic. He lifted Inferno's claws up, giving them a small stare, before looking down into the pool, at Inferno's reflection. Inferno felt her heart start to race, Ash feeling a twinge of shock at the sight of Inferno's snout.
I haven't had a body in so long, Ash whispered. But now, I'm free. I'm free to do whatever I want.
Ash? Inferno gulped. Please, let me have my body back.
Ash tilted Inferno's head, staring at it as the reflection moved in the pool. Inferno could feel his anger. You did this to me. It's your fault.
Inferno shut her eyes. When she opened them again, she was back in Liliana's hand. Lightning cracked.
"Why?" Inferno yelled, her voice drowned out by thunder. "It wasn't me! I didn't kill you! You lied to me! You're not my brother!"
The dragonet Ash's head lifted up, meeting eyes with Inferno, blackened scales covering his snout. When he saw her, he jittered, ducking his head beneath his holed wing again. He wasn't scared of the Empress.
Inferno closed her eyes, and when she opened them. There was only darkness. And then. She heard a scream. A dragonet's scream coming from her. Talons touched her scale, grasping her, clawing at her. With every touch, she screamed louder as she felt her scales burning, fire coursing across her body as they raked her. The heat was unstoppable, everywhere. This wasn't her memory. This was Ash's.
She tried to claw into the darkness, only to feel her talons scratch a hard, impenetrable wall. The other talons grasped her neck, and she felt that burn too, scales and flesh peeling away. Soon, there'd be nothing left.
STOP! she pleaded, Ash's thoughts her own. STOPSTOPSTOPSTOPSTOP! DON'T KILL ME! I DON'T WANT TO DIE!
Then, it stopped. She stopped dying. She felt whispers in her mind, voices too quiet to hear. Claws touched her, her scales blazed, but she didn't die.
Time passed. The walls cracked. A small hairline, at first, and light flooded into her eyes, too bright to see anything at first. The eggshell began to open up as she slammed another talon on it. Finally, it opened, and she tumbled out onto ground, whimpering as she touched hard rock. A different hurt, the airs against her raw skin, ravaged by fire. Everywhere, spreading from where the rocks poked her to each scale on her body.
She stared. For the first time, she saw herself — she saw Ash's tail, attached to her. Salmon scales had been replaced with reds and blacks from the burns of a million scratches. Her entire body hurt. She opened a wing, wet with the egg juices. There was little left of the membranes, most of it burnt away. She wasn't sure how she knew, but she knew she was a SkyWing, and she knew she would never be able to fly.
She looked back at the eggshell, as another snout poked out from it. Her blood ran cold. She was looking at herself. A SkyWing dragonet, with fire red scales and vivid blue eyes stared back at Ash, flexing her talons, blood boiling off them.
Your sister, Inferno realized. Ignite. As she stared into Ignite's eyes, she felt something in common, something far more than just looks. She was Ignite. Ignite was her. The two were one, and had already been one.
Memories, this time her own, Ignite's, lept into her head. She remembered Ignite's hatching, now from her own perspective. She looked back at the eggshell after climbing out of it, and her eyes landed on what was inside. A small, maybe dragon-shaped, crisp lay still at the bottom of the eggshell. She prodded it. Ash. In this world, he hadn't survived.
Fire. She looked up as it rose over the horizon, a bright flash of light contained in the flame as it billowed up, a cloud of bright fire spreading out in a hemisphere from the top of a column. Heat and wind pushed her to the side, Ignite's tiny wings opening to catch it as the newly hatched dragonet glided away from the mushroom cloud. Flame and wind. It was beautiful.
As bright light flooded her new eyes, the memory faded. She looked up to see Ignite again, this time, an older dragonet. She was in Ash's memory again.
Inferno let out a cry in pain as she felt claws around her, no, Ash's, tail, the grasp burning her. She stared at Ignite's talons, squeezing into her already scorched tail, smoke rising as the burnt scales burnt further.
"You're coming with me," Ignite hissed. A chill ran down Ash's spine, and Inferno turned around, desperately trying to get away. One of her talons landed on Ignite's underbelly, and Inferno screamed again as she felt her paw burn.
"Let me go!" Ash's voice yelled out. "Let me go, please!"
"I'm not letting you ruin this chance for me," Ignite snarled, grasping tighter as she placed a talon to Ash's wings, burning another hole in them. Ash screamed more as she tried to pull him, charcoaled scales crumbling off.
"I'll go, I'll go, I will!" Ash cried.
Ignite glared at him again, before finally dropping his tail. He tucked it between his legs, shaking.
"What are you whimpering about, anyways?" Ignite snorted. Inferno saw a twinge of envy in her gaze, her glare almost hatred. "I can't kill you, can I? You're lucky. Unlike me, you can't die. And you can actually touch dragons, even though you're too ugly for anyone to want that. Now, follow."
Ash whimpered as he tripped onto the ground, his head whacking the floor. When Inferno's head had raised up again, the scenery had changed. Ignite was still there, but now, years older, maybe a few years beyond Inferno's own age. Inferno shivered. Now that Ignite was older, the comparison was even more frightening. Ignite was her crueler, spitting image.
A stray wind blew across Ash's stinging scales, picking up a flurry of sand, blowing through the holes in his wings. The two were in a desert together, sand turned to glass beneath Ignite's claws. Now, Ash looked up at another eerily familiar face.
"Who is this?" Calamity asked, squinting as he tilted his head. His two eyes tilted as they stared into Ash's own. He was younger than the Calamity that Inferno had met, with his body completely corporeal. Still, he felt the same, the aloof smile, the cold, uncaring voice. But now, she felt . . . curiosity.
"My brother?" Ignite asked, frowning. She poked Ash in the side, causing him to let out a cry of agony. "Don't pay attention to him. He's useless. He can't breath fire, and he can't fly."
"Your brother," Calamity repeated, a toothy grin coming over the MudWing. He took a step forward, craning his head around Ash, examining him like a piece of shiny treasure. "You're sure? He's your brother?"
"Of course he is," Ignite scoffed. "I've known him since we hatched together."
Calamity traced a talon along Inferno's neck, causing Ash to whimper as it dug into blackened scale. "How did he survive? You should have burnt him. This doesn't look like anything a hatchling could've survived."
"Dunno," Ignite frowned. "He can't die for some reason. Why are you paying attention to him? Look at me, I can do this!" Ignite shut her eyes, and suddenly, the air around her turned shifted hues, blue flames rising up around her.
Calamity didn't notice, enamoured by Ash. "He can't die, huh?" he asked.
Suddenly, Inferno let out a scream as Calamity's paw darted forward. Ash's head tilted down, and she stared. He'd stabbed his claws into her chest, slicing through her heart.
"He really can't," Calamity replied, blood spurting from Ash's chest as he pulled them back out. Inferno stood still, the normally mortal wound causing nothing but pain, something Ash was used to at that point. "Interesting." He smiled. "Ash, I think you're an animus. Very interesting. I think you're going to be quite useful to me, you know that?"
A flash of light lit up in the distance, and Ash turned his head away, his eyes shutting. When they opened once more, a dragon and a scavenger stood above him, staring down at him. A younger Liliana, in scavenger form, rode on Trustbreaker's neck. She leaped down with ease, landing on her feet and hands.
"This is it, Duskwind?" Liliana asked in Dragon, her voice strange and squeaky to Inferno's ears. "It's a lot less . . . spectacular than I thought it would be."
Inferno felt Ash try to move, unable to. She suddenly realized why. Although she could see, hear, smell, and feel the world around her, she had no body. She was looking out from behind a glassy surface. The Wishstone.
Duskwind glanced back nervously, fidgeting with his talons. The doorway behind them had been blocked off with rubble. "The cultists are going to be able to break in soon. I don't think we have much time. We should hurry and use it. We might not get another chance."
"Yeah," Liliana frowned. "A perfect world, huh? One where dragons and humans all live in peace." She reached out, and fingers grasped around Inferno's vision.
Who are you? Ash asked Liliana.
"Three moons! It can speak!" Liliana said in alarm, jumping back, almost dropping the Wishstone. "Can you hear it?"
Duskwind shook his head, and slowly crouched by Liliana, touching a talon to the Wishstone.
Why are you here? Ash asked the two. You shouldn't be here.
"You're the fabled Wishstone, isn't it?" Liliana asked. She smiled. "We've been searching for you for a long time. We're going to make this world better." She squinted, and Inferno felt the vision of a happy, peaceful world suddenly pop into Inferno's head.
You shouldn't do this, Ash gulped. This is dangerous. I don't know what will happen.
"We can wish for anything, right?" Duskwind asked him. "You just need to grant it."
This is big, Ash replied. It scares me. Please don't make me try it.
Liliana shook her head. "Sorry. We're not giving up now, right Duskwind?" The NightWing nodded. "We're going to change Pyrrhia, for everyone here, for everyone we lost. We're going to make a perfect world, a utopia. If that's too much for your powers, then well, I guess nothing will happen."
No, Ash protested, that's not what I'm worried about. A strange energy seemed to pulse through Inferno, coursing through her as Liliana and Duskwind both projected their wishes into her. For a moment, she felt everything, every atom, every dragon, every scavenger, Ash's memories far from able to hold all it in his head, just a shadow of the experience. She saw Liliana's desire, and Duskwind's desire, both attempting to force themselves into reality. STOP! Ash screamed. PLEASE STOP!
It was too late. Unable to reconcile the visions with each other and with reality, the magic went into effect. With nothing to interpret it, nothing but Ash's mind to control it, it broke loose. Dragons ripped apart, faded from existence, as all that was in this world became no more. There was nothing Ash could do about it, only able to watch as everything disappeared in front of his eyes, leaving only Liliana and Duskwind holding the Wishstone. When Inferno looked out, there was nothing but darkness. A great void. The world was gone, and they were all that was left.
Then, she was somewhere else. She saw her body move. Her own body, but not her own. She felt no experience of her own mind moving it. She realized where she was. She was in Ash's memories, trapped inside Inferno as he watched her move.
She was in the Talons of Peace. A glance at her paws, far smaller than they were now, made her realize that this was when she was a dragonet. Maybe two years old, at most. A force moved her body, her limbs propelling themself forward without any input. The same feeling that she got when Ash had controlled her — Ash felt the same way whenever he wasn't in control?
Inferno walked down one of the narrow hallways. Ash could feel her anger. Why was she angry? She couldn't tell. It seemed like she was just a blinding mess of dragonet rage. That was weird. Inferno had always been taught to not be angry, hadn't she? Because otherwise, she could a hurt a dragon, and they'd be scared of her.
A SeaWing yelped and leaped to the side of the cavern as he saw her coming, the young SkyWing dragonet grumpily walking past him as he pushed himself against the cavern wall. Ash could smell his fear, his terror as he waited patiently for Inferno to walk past. She did, without any injury.
And then, after turning the cavern, Inferno stopped. Her head turned upwards, her glare focusing on a huge SandWing, dwarfing the dragonet. Inferno went still as she realized who it was. Coyote. The SandWing she'd burnt, when she was young.
The SandWing looked back down at the dragonet, not particularly scared or impressed with her. Scars covered his body, scratches and burns from the war. But one scar was suspiciously missing, the burn scar on his tail. The one that Inferno had made. She began to realize what memory this was. This was when Inferno had burnt Coyote.
How had it happened? Inferno couldn't remember exactly how. It was one of the gaps in her memories, something that she'd figured she was too young to recall, as traumatizing as it must have been. Goat and Ash had told her the same story, that she'd just accidentally bumped into him when she'd turned a corner. She felt a chill come over her. She was standing right in front of Coyote. She couldn't accidentally bump into her from here.
Anxiety filled Ash's thoughts as he sensed Inferno's rage. Inferno, he said in the memory. Please, stop. You're angry. Take a deep breath, calm down.
That was weird. Inferno had only remembered Ash speaking to her in her dreams, at least before he'd spoken to him when Aurora had almost toppled the cave down.
"You made mommy cry!" the young Inferno squealed, hissing up at Coyote. "I hate you! I don't want you to be my daddy!"
Coyote frowned. "Go away," the SandWing growled, baring his fangs at Inferno. "You're just a dragonet. Don't get into adult business." He turned his back to the SkyWing dragonet, beginning to walk away.
"No!" Inferno squealed, reaching her talons out. "I hate you! I hate you!"
Inferno! STOP! Ash yelled out, his voice filling the dragonet's head.
Inferno's talons grasped around the SandWing's tail, halfway to its base. Smoke started to rise up from Coyote's scales, and he let out a high-pitched scream. He tried to pull his tail away from her, the barb swinging left and right, but Inferno refused to let go, more of it burning as Coyote tried to scramble away.
"LET GO!" Coyote wailed. He raised his claws, about to swipe at Inferno, but even in his agony, lowered them, whether because he didn't want to strike a dragonet or realized that would just burn his paw. "LET GO! PLEASE!"
Inferno, please, let go! Ash cried into her head. Suddenly, Inferno could feel Coyote's pain too in her memories, Ash able to feel it as she touched Coyote. Please, stop hurting him! Stop! Stop!
Coyote continued screaming, Ash's yells joining him. Inferno felt him try to take control of her body, but he couldn't, the pain breaking his concentration, unable to do anything, just watching as Inferno grasped Coyote. Inferno refused to let go, her claws digging further into the SandWing's tail. A crowd started to gather around the two, brought by Coyote's agony. Dragons stared at Inferno in shock. What could they do? They couldn't pull her off.
Then, Ash and Inferno felt a large, hard, object hit her head, and Inferno let out a yelp. A rock fell at the dragonet's paws, and she let go of Coyote's tail in surprise. He scampered off, whimpering as he tried to find cold water to dip it in.
Inferno turned around. Goat glared down at her, her eyes red and furious. She picked up another rock, flinging it at Inferno. The dragonet let out another cry as it hit her, blood dripping from her head.
"Never!" Goat hissed, claws trembling. "Never touch anyone, again! So help me feathered spirit, if you do, I'll wrangle your neck myself!" She glared at the crowd, and breathed a puff of flame. "Go away! This isn't your business! Inferno! Back to our cave, now!"
She turned, and Inferno followed. Ash stared, sheer terror in his own mind. What sort of monster was Inferno becoming?
"I should have flown up in the sky and dropped you from your eggshell," Goat muttered, loud enough for Inferno to hear. "That's what everyone else would've done. And now I have to pay for my mistake."
The scene changed, as the caverns became a beautiful valley, a river running through it. Ash's dreamscape. She was still seeing his memories, with a young Inferno standing before him, unable to meet his eyes. She could feel Ash's thoughts as he saw her. He couldn't see anyone but Ignite.
Ash stared at his talons, shaking. This was the night after she'd burnt Coyote. She could hear his thoughts. He was scared. He felt powerless, without agency, just like when Ignite and Calamity had controlled him, when Liliana and Duskwind had controlled him. He was trapped in Inferno's body, and there was nothing he could do to prevent her from hurting dragons.
"Are you angry at me?" Inferno grumbled. "Everyone is angry at me. Everyone hates me. They have always hated me, even mother, and now she hates me more. Do you hate me?"
Ash trembled. "I-I don't hate you," he replied. I'm scared of you. "But you can't hurt dragons. Never. Never ever."
"Why?" Inferno grumbled. "They hurt me."
"They'll hate you, they'll be scared of you," Ash responded. "You have to be calm, kind, and careful, or they'll hurt you more. So never, ever, do anything like that again, alright? I won't let you become anything like my sister. You'll never hurt anyone."
Inferno tilted her head, confused. "But I am your sister. How can I not be like myself?"
Ash stared, and Inferno's blood ran cold. Flames spread across the dreamscape, the grass turning to crisp darkness, and Inferno heard thunder above her. Once again, she was in Liliana's hand, clutching around her.
Ash, why couldn't you have just been truthful? she wondered. If you told me how much you hated being trapped in my body, I would've helped you. You didn't have to control me, I would've shared with you. But instead, you hurt me. You made me afraid. Why?
She stared at the whimpering dragonet, has body blackened as he shut his eyes, trying to pretend that Inferno wasn't there. He was terrified of Inferno.
The final rope of light snapped, and Inferno's eyes fluttered open, this time, in the real world. She let out a yell as the Empress withdrew her talons from Inferno's head, a round clear stone within her claws. For the first time in years, she couldn't feel Ash anymore. His presence was gone.
Inferno clutched her head as memories and emotions Ash had hidden from her rushed in. Anger. Frustration. Hate. She hated the Empress, she hated Coyote, she hated Goat, she hated Ash. She felt her breath become unsteady, her claws wrapping around sand, like she wanted to do nothing else but to strangle the life out of a burning dragon. She let out a terrifying scream of rage, so powerful even the Empress jumped back in alarm.
Flames flared up around Inferno's scales, the sand beneath her melting and turning into glittering glass. A red glow around her from the fire turned to yellow as she yelled, then to white, and finally, a blue aura surrounding her, engulfing the Empress, the RainWing's scales burning away. The vines around Inferno started to burn, crisping and turning into ash as they crumbled onto the ground. All of her power, her flame, her anger, was free.
As the Empress screamed, burning away, Aurora took the chance. She placed her talons on the vine running down her throat, instantly turning it into air. She dove towards Midnight, groggily raising her head as the heat woke her up, and wrapped her talons around her half-sister. With a pull, Aurora phased Midnight through the vines around her, and flapped her wings, strong winds pushing the two towards the arena wall. In an instant, they were gone, phasing through the stone.
Then, it faded. As soon as it came, Inferno's blue flames faded away, smoke once again rising from her scales. She took a deep breath, becoming calm. As the glow from her scales faded, her eyes landed on what was left of the Empress: a pile of ash on the sand, the pale spherical orb of the Wishstone resting on top of the mound.
Inferno fluttered her eyes, and took a step towards the Wishstone, reaching out her talons. But before she could touch it, a scavenger's hand reached out from the pile, grasping onto the stone, fingers clenching around it. Another hand rose up, and Inferno felt her limbs stiffen up. An invisible force suddenly flung her against the arena wall, stone cracking as she fell to the sand.
The Empress, now in scavenger form, climbed out from the pile of ash. She shook herself off, before raising the Wishstone up in front of her eyes. She grinned greedily, eyes wide as she stared into it. She had it. Now, she could do anything she wanted. With the Wishstone, she was a God.
The Empress lifted her head, hair falling down as she rose up into the sky, RainWings in the arena seats staring as the morning sun glittered down on her, bowing their heads as if in worship. A new golden crown of leaves appeared on her head.
She looked back down to the sand for a moment, offering the mortals beneath her a final glance. Aurora and Midnight were gone, having escaped while the Empress had been distracted. "No matter," she smiled. "I got what I needed."
Holding the Wishstone out with both hands, white light started to glow from within it, swirls and arcs of the light suddenly pouring out from the wishstone in a spiral around the floating Empress. She tried to envision all her desires. This time, she would be more careful. She would make a world that could work, one where everyone could be happy. White mist started to pour out from the Wishstone, spreading across the arena, then the Sky Kingdom, and then, all of Pyrrhia.
This time, she would make a utopia.
Chapter 55"Leopard," a voice whispered. "Leopard, c'mon, wake up."
Leopard's tired eyes slowly fluttered open to see a pale SandWing dragonet above her, black diamond scales jostling her awake. Aloe glanced around nervously, careful that they weren't being watched. A drop of water from a stalactite, splattering in Leopard's snout.
"Mm, what is it?" Leopard murmured, still half asleep.
"It's time to go!" Aloe huffed, careful to keep her voice quiet. "We're escaping tonight, remember?" She frowned. "You fell asleep, on the night we were escaping."
Leopard slowly got to her paws, stretching out as she stumbled onto the hard, stone ground. Another drop of water dripped down on her from above. It seemed like the caverns were always wet and soggy. Not surprising, with the ocean on the other side of the stone.
"Sorry," Leopard apologized, trying to shake herself away. "I thought it was tomorrow."
"It is tomorrow," Aloe sighed. "It has to be today. Blister's is returning tomorrow, so we need to be out before then." She walked to the natural entranceway, a slanted hole in the cavern wall, and nervously glanced to the left and right. Upon finding no SandWings hiding in the shadows, she continued out into one of the large tunnels that had been partially natural, partially excavated. "Come on. We have to hurry, or the guards will notice I'm missing soon."
"Yeah," Leopard murmured, still half-asleep, swaying from side to side as she followed Aloe in the tunnels.
Aloe sighed as she glanced back to Leopard. She knew how important this was. Their chance to escape, to finally be free. Why couldn't she act more like it?
Dark walls closed in on them as Aloe nervously traversed the corridor, Leopard trailing behind. This was probably the most dangerous part of their plan. If they woke up a guard, or someone on watch saw them, they'd fail. They'd be punished, and wouldn't have another chance to escape until Blister left again. If even that.
Aloe turned into a smaller corridor, off the main one. She let out a sigh of relief as she saw the dim torches lighting it, a number of them already out. No one really came down here much — for most dragons, this was a dead end. But as the three had recently discovered, there was a secret exit, only for the bravest and the fastest swimmers. Aloe didn't think even Blister knew about it, not that Aloe would ever tell her mother.
Aloe turned around as the tunnel started slanting down, a trickle of water coating the floor. She looked back at Leopard, giving her a grin as the two met eyes. "C'mon, almost there."
Leopard turned too, and the two started to walk backwards, Leopard making sure to give Aloe a wide berth, so not to accidentally trip and cut Aloe with her barb. That would certainly ruin their plan — they'd have to go back for brightsting, and someone would definitely see them if they did.
The slope began to get steeper, and Aloe grasped onto rocks in order to climb down the tunnel. Flying would've been preferable, but the tunnel was far too narrow for that. Suddenly, Aloe let out a small yelp as she felt her talons slip out from beneath her in one paw, the slick rock difficult to stand on. She quickly grasped onto the side of the tunnel, stumbling as a few displaced pebbles tumbled down. Pausing, she let out a sigh of relief. That was close.
"Be careful," Aloe warned Leopard. "It's slippery."
Leopard nodded in agreement, and the two continued downwards, moving at a snail's pace down the slope. Aloe only finally let herself relax, just a tad, when the bottom was in sight. Letting go of the rocks, she flipped onto her back, tucking in her wings as she slid down the rest of the way, scales protecting her from any scrapes.
Leopard cautiously followed, eventually touching the bottom and turning around, glad to no longer be on the slope. The two stared out into the cavern below, opening up into a hemi-spherical chamber, filled with a pool of water.
Aloe frowned, looking around, slightly worried. Where was he? She inched forward, glancing down into the deep blue water, the scent of salt and the ocean rising up from it. They were so close. She dipped a claw into it, a ripple running across its surface.
Suddenly, the surface broke, as jaws snapped up out of the water, droplets flinging everywhere. Leopard squealed, and Aloe leaped back, heart pounding. Milky-green scales rose up from the pool, starbursts glowing on the SeaWing's flapping wings, splashing cold water onto Aloe and Leopard as he laughed playfully. A thin chain hung from his neck, a golden dolphin with ruby eyes swinging from it.
"Moons, Rift, you scared me!" Aloe huffed. "I could have stabbed you."
"Sorry," Rift laughed, unable to get over his surprise attack. He settled down in the water, glowstripes lighting up the dim cavern. "I just got a little bored. What took you all so long?"
Aloe tossed an irritated glare at Leopard, rolling her eyes. "Someone fell asleep. Tonight, of all nights!"
"Sorry," Leopard whimpered, crouching back. "I didn't mean to."
"It's fine," Rift grinned. "We've got quite a while until dawn. We'll be out of here and in the Summer Palace before the light of morning hits the horizon."
"The Summer Palace," Aloe smiled, eyes opening wide in amazement. She'd heard so much about it from Rift. A miraculous structure created by magic, far taller than the tallest tree. She shuffled her wings, just imagining it.
Leopard snuck up to the pool of water, craning her head over it. "Is there really an exit?" she asked Rift. "Out to the ocean?"
Rift nodded. "I checked it out. There is one, but it's too far for a SandWing to swim on a single breath, so Blister hasn't found it you."
Leopard gulped. "If it's too far for a SandWing, does that mean we're going to drown?"
Rift shook his head. "Not with me. I'm a fast swimmer. I'll take you through the exit fast enough, don't worry."
Leopard glanced nervously back at the pool. She really didn't want to drown here.
"You can trust me," Rift smiled. "You'll be fine. Hop on."
The SeaWing prince crouched down, spreading out his lit-up wings to make it easier for Leopard to climb on his back. The SandWing hesitantly did so, careful to curl up her barb as her talons dug into Rift's scales.
"I'll be back for you," Rift told Aloe. "Just wait here. Leopard, you ready?"
Leopard nodded, and took in a huge breath, sucking in as much air as she could, until the scales on her cheeks puffed out. As soon as she was finished, Rift leaped into the pool, cold water splashing onto Aloe's snout.
Aloe looked down as the two sunk into the pool. White light glimmered from beneath where Rift's scales acted as a beacon, before getting dimmer, and finally disappearing. Aloe let out a sigh, and sat back on her haunches.
The young SandWing princess's talons nervously tapped on the ground, Aloe fidgeting from side to side. She peered over the pool again, trying to spot Rift. She couldn't.
Had something gone wrong? Aloe wondered. What if Leopard drowned?
She began to fret, pacing back and forth, when finally, Rift's had popped out from the surface.
"Alright, your turn!" the SeaWing prince said. "Climb on! Leopard is waiting at the other end."
Aloe let out a relived huff, and climbed onto Rift's back, holding on tight.
"Take a deep breath," Rift warned her. Aloe did as he asked, sucking in air until she thought her lungs would burst. Then, Rift jolted forward, Aloe clinging as he splashed down into the pool.
Cold saltwater stung as she opened her eyes, a faint glow from Rift's scales lighting up their way. She winced from the pressure as Rift started diving down, her ears hurting. It was only a few moments before the bottom of the pool was in sight, and Rift turned, weaving around underwater stalagmites into a small hole. Aloe ducked against Rift, her horns scraping against the rock as he swam into the tight tunnel.
Small bubbles started to escape from Aloe's jaws as Rift swum back and forth through the tight tunnel, weaving in and out. For a moment, Aloe started to get worried, but then it started to open out into a larger underwater cave. The SeaWing's flippers and wings propelled the two up, and Aloe's eyes widened as she saw moonlight above them. They were almost on the outside of the island.
With a splash, Rift burst into the air, before landing on his belly in the water. Aloe let out a gasp, taking in air as she stumbled off Rift's back, onto a sand bar. She crawled up it, breathes fast, when she finally wiped the saltwater from her eyes, able to see the land in front of her.
Her heart seemed to skip a beat, and she felt her talons shake as the scene in front of her finally unblurred. She took a terrified step back into the surf. More dragons than just Leopard stood a short distance up the beach, black beady eyes staring at Rift and Aloe as they surfaced.
"Well, this is a surprise," Blister remarked, eyes focused on her daughter. Her voice seemed to slither like a snake, just the menace within it hurting Aloe's ears. Her tail curled all the way around Leopard's neck, constricting around it with Blister's barb resting beneath her chin, the tip just a claw-length from puncturing her scales. "Out for a midnight swim, are we?"
"Y-you weren't supposed to be back until tomorrow," Aloe whimpered, taking another step back into the ocean. They'd been caught. Who would pay for it, this time, and how?
"I lied," Blister replied. Her tail grasped tighter around Leopard, the young SandWing holding absolutely still as the barb twitched. "Do you need me to remind you what I said I'd do if either of you ever escaped? I told you I'd kill Leopard."
Leopard let out a squeal of terror as she felt Blister's barb prod her throat, not quite enough to puncture it.
"No!" Aloe cried out, tears running from her eyes. "Please, please don't!"
The half-dozen SandWings behind Blister stood still, none of them making a motion to stop her. Leopard wouldn't get any help from them.
Blister smiled. "It good that the three of you didn't get very far. If you'd gone beyond the island's shore, I would've had to stay true to my word. But this means I don't have to kill Leopard after all."
Blister's tail uncurled, and Leopard let out a gasp of air as she landed on the sand. Aloe stared down at her claws in the water, heart racing. She let out a sigh of relief. None of them were going to die.
"However, that doesn't mean the three of you are free of punishment," Blister continued. "Guards, take Leopard to the dungeons. She'll be good insurance that Aloe won't try anything like this again, anytime soon. Rift. To me."
Leopard let out a defeated whimper as two SandWings grabbed ahold of her, dragging her off, her tail making a trail through the sand. She wondered: how long would she be down there this time?
Rift took a step forward, through the water, raising his head high. If he was afraid, he didn't show it. As he walked onto the dry sand, Aloe saw something in the water glitter in the moonlight. His dolphin necklace. She carefully placed her talons around it, trying as hard as she could to make sure her mother didn't notice.
Blister looked up at Rift as he stood in front of her. Two guards grabbed onto his wings, holding him in place. He just looked down. He wouldn't give her any satisfaction from this.
"You're going to regret ever hatching," Blister snarled, flicking her tail. Rift tensed up as the smooth part of the barb brushed against the side of his neck. "I was hoping that having Leopard's life on the line would be enough to keep you from leaving the island, but apparently not. I'm going to make sure you never swim again."
"No!" Aloe squealed.
Blister turned to one of her guards. "Quill. Hold her. I want her to watch."
Quill bowed his head, and walked down to the beach. Aloe stumbled back, into the water. Could she try and fly away? No. She'd be out-flown, and Blister would kill Leopard if she did. She could do nothing but struggle as Quill grabbed her wings, talons digging into her membranes as he lifted her into the air.
"Watch," he growled.
Aloe twisted from side to side, trying to get free. She flashed her barb, only for Quill to drop one of her wings to hold her tail in place. He moved his other forepaw to her neck, dangling her by it.
"Stop, please!" Aloe squealed, coughing. "Mother, please! Don't hurt him! It was my idea to run away, I should be the one punished, not Rift!"
"I know that, darling," Blister smiled, flicking her tongue out. "I am punishing you. I'm teaching you an important lesson."
Aloe whimpered, the necklace tight in her claws. "Lesson?" she gulped. "What lesson?"
"The lesson is not to have friends someone else can hurt," Blister frowned. "And to never disobey me again."
Blister's tail twisted, the barb pointing towards Rift. Aloe tried to look away as she stabbed it down, but Quill kept her snout pointed forward.
Rift let out an ear-splitting shriek as Blister's barb stabbed into his gill, injecting poison as she scraped it down one side of his neck. He writhed as the two soldiers held him down, one grasping onto his horns to keep his head from moving. Blister's tail tore through scale and flesh, crimson blood dripping from his wound, staining the sand.
As soon as his screams started to quiet, Blister flipped her tail to the other side of his neck. Her barb pierced into his other gill, and he screamed again, so loud Aloe hoped someone on the next island over would hear it, come to his rescue. Aloe attempted to turn her head once more, but she couldn't. Blister stared at Aloe. This is your fault. You did this to him.
Then, a loud crash seemed to break through the island, a great rumble. Aloe's eyes fluttered awake, the SandWing's heart racing. She was in her bed, Leopard at her side. Just a nightmare. A memory. Blister was dead. She couldn't hurt them any more.
Aloe frowned. Was the crash part of the nightmare? She didn't remember that happening before. That was odd, maybe—
The SandWing palace shook again, the walls and bed shaking as another loud crash shook through it. Aloe's talons tensed up, fully awake. That was definitely not part of her nightmare.
"Leopard!" Aloe gulped, placing her talons on the SandWing next to her, trying to jostle her awake. "Leopard, get up!"
Leopard groaned as she opened her eyes, letting out a yawn. "Hmm?" she asked Aloe. "It's early."
The muffled yells of SandWings sounded from beyond the two's door, and Aloe heard a group run past her in the hallway. The palace shook again, dust falling loose from the ceiling.
Leopard turned around in alarm, raising her head. "What's going on?" she asked, suddenly fully awake. "Are we under attack?"
Aloe winced. That was what she had been afraid of. This didn't feel like another earthquake — the one recently had been a constant rumble, before it quieted. And she hadn't heard her soldiers get to arms at that. "I think so," she said. "But how?"
Leopard grimaced, and got up from their bed, heading towards the door. "Careful," she warned Aloe. She opened the door, craning her head around, into the hallway. No one was there. If this was an attack, Sunny's soldiers hadn't made it here yet.
Another rumble sounded, Leopard suddenly losing her claw-hold on the stone. The shift threw her across the hall, to the outer edge. She squinted as she grasped onto one of the narrow slits in the edge of the palace, catching a glimpse of the outside. Out of the corner, she managed to catch a glimpse of a small group of SandWings. All of them were surrounded a strange metal object, like a cylinder. Leopard stared for a moment, then, one of the SandWings puffed fire on it.
Immediately, the cylinder shot out smoke and flame, and Leopard let out a yelp in surprise. Something heavy hit the palace wall, stone and bricks falling from it. It shook again, and Aloe walked up to another slit, staring with Leopard.
"What are those?" Aloe asked, after the smoke cleared, staring at the Iron Dragons.
"I don't know," Leopard replied in a hurry, "but I think Sunny or Six-Claws is using them to attack the palace. At this rate, they'll be in soon."
"She's destroying," Aloe whispered, shocked. "She's destroying her own palace." She'd thought she had an advantage, holding the stronghold. It was supposed to be impenetrable. But now . . .
"It's not too late," Leopard said, seeing the sudden look of defeat on Aloe's snout. "If it's just a small hole, we're still in the advantage. We need to rally our troops, as quick as possible. We can defend against this."
Leopard turned, running down the corridor, as Aloe quickly followed her. For a moment, Leopard's words inspired a glimpse of hope in Aloe. Maybe they could get out of this fine, or even win right here and now.
Another blast shook the stronghold, and Aloe stumbled forward, almost into Leopard as they turned a corner. A small group of SandWings were coming their way. Aloe's troops, coming to check on her.
"Get everyone into position!" Leopard commanded. "We need to focus our defenses on wherever they're trying to break into from."
"They're coming in from the bottom floors," one said. "They broke through on the south side."
Aloe's head turned to the SandWing, recognizing him from her dream. Quill. She held her breath, waiting patiently behind Leopard.
"Then we'll keep them from getting any higher," Leopard replied. She pointed to a small sandy-brown dragon. "You. Organize everyone on the floors beneath us, get them up. Then block off the stairs, make it difficult for them. Buy us time. We retreat up to the third floor, and fight them there as they come up."
The SandWing bowed, before rushing off. This would be a dangerous job, but someone needed to do it. Blister had trained these soldiers well. After experiencing her, there was nothing that could break their spirits.
"C'mon," Leopard said to the rest of the group. "It's time to fight back. The nearest stairwell up is this way."
Leopard continued rushing down the corridor, Aloe right behind her, as the rest of the SandWings followed. More shakes rumbled through the palace, as the south walls started to crumble. Still, Aloe suddenly felt more confident as the stairwell came into her vision. Leopard's plan was good. There were few dragons as dependable as she was in a time of crisis, and Aloe wouldn't have chosen anyone else. Not even Rift. They just needed to reach the stairs, and get more soldiers up to the third floor with them, and they'd be able to fight the attack off.
As soon as Aloe reached the stairwell, she let out a yelp, as she suddenly spotted more dragons out of the corner of her eyes. Four SandWings in black cloaks had been hiding around the corner, and as soon as Aloe got close enough to them, they leaped at her, throwing her to the ground. Aloe twisted, trying to get them off as she felt tails twist, four barbs stabbing down into her.
"Aloe!" Leopard yelled, jumping on one of the SandWings' back. She grasped the cloak, her talons pulling back around a strong chain. The SandWing tried to gasp, shaking back and forth as Leopard choked him, shaking from side to side as he tried to hit her against the corridor wall.
As she felt her back hit the stone, Leopard whipped her tail up in the air. Her aim was true, and the barb landed in the cloaked SandWing's heart. He let out a cry, as Leopard threw him forward, pulling her tail back out. As he died, Leopard jumped towards Aloe, ready to fight the next one.
She didn't have to — the other three cloaked SandWings were scattered around Aloe, quickly dispatched by the rest of the troops with Aloe and Leopard. Leopard rushed over to Aloe, tail curled defensively on the ground.
"Are you alright?" Leopard asked. "Are you hurt?"
Aloe shook her head as she slowly got back to her paws, clutching at her dolphin necklace. Spilt venom dripped from her pale scales, but none of the barbs had pierced her. Without the necklace, she wouldn't have had a chance. "I'm fine."
Aloe glanced down at the cloaked SandWing nearest her, blood spilling from his pierced neck. She watched as it dripped onto a golden chain, his black cloak stained. The stench of warm iron hit her. Carefully, Aloe crouched down to examine the chain. A shining medallion hung from it, a vulture imprinted on its surface. Aloe lifted the cloak to see tattoos lining the SandWing's body, black dragon skulls.
"Assassins," Aloe frowned.
"I didn't think Six-Claws would have resorted to them," Leopard grimaced. "He's not that type of dragon."
Aloe shook her as she stepped over to one of the slitted windows. She stared out as SandWings flew around the palace, looking for a way in. Her eyes caught on one, standing on top of a mound with a few more dragons near her, including a MudWing.
"It wasn't Six-Claws," Aloe said. "Sunny's back."
Leopard clenched her talons. She'd really been hoping that Sunny would stay dead, and that this would be solved without any more bloodshed. It looked like that wasn't going to be the case. "We need to hurry. Upstairs."
Aloe and the rest of the soldiers with her followed as they climbed onto the third floor of the palace. Angled walls seemed to crowd them in as they rushed towards the center, where Leopard thought they'd be the most safe from any more shakes.
Aloe glanced around nervously. More SandWings rushed up another set of stairs, joining her group. It wouldn't be enough. Had the orders gotten delivered? Or was most of her army still downstairs, in the rest of the palace?
Another rumble shook through the palace. Aloe glanced up, to the stone ceiling. The stronghold was designed to be hard to get into, but it was just as hard to get out of. "The walls aren't defending us anymore," Aloe whispered. "The palace has become a death-trap. We've lost."
Leopard stared at the staircase. If there were more SandWings on their side coming up, they'd be able to make a stand here. They'd have a chance. But . . . none came. "We haven't lost," Leopard said, trying to remain hopeful. "As long as you're alive and free, we haven't lost. We could . . . abandon the palace. Escape."
Aloe shook her head. "How? How can we get out?"
"The dungeons?" Leopard grimaced. "The passage that Sunny escaped through."
"No," Aloe sighed. She laid herself down on the ground, her underbelly to the floor, staring up at all the SandWings around her, watching her carefully to see what she would order them to do. Where had Quill gone? She couldn't see him in the small group. "If she escaped from there, she'll have the arena watched. We can surrender. I'll give myself up, and maybe the rest of you can go free."
"Aloe, no!" Leopard gulped. She wouldn't let Aloe be a prisoner, not again. "We're not doing that. We're not giving up. There still has to be a way."
"It's hopeless," Aloe glumly muttered. She stared down at her claws. They seemed to blur in front of her, the points gone soft. She looked over towards Leopard. That was strange. Leopard seemed to look the same, a strange foggy hue covering her body.
Apparently, Aloe wasn't the only one who could see it. More of the soldiers started to murmur as white mist began to fill the room, scales and other features blurring.
"Mist," Leopard frowned, waving a talon through it. It didn't feel more humid than usual, but it obscured her vision, at least a little bit. Her expression lit up. "Mist! Aloe, do you know what this means?"
"No," Aloe asked, unsure why Leopard was suddenly so excited.
"I think the weather is on our side," Leopard grinned. "They'll be coming in here, barely able to see! Maybe we can find a way to sneak out!"
"Maybe," Aloe continued, her mood lightening, just the smallest bit. She tilted her head as she stared through the mist, the outlines of dragons fuzzy within it. She'd lost the palace, but that didn't mean this was over. Maybe, Leopard was right. Maybe, they could escape.
Chapter 56Midnight's eyes suddenly fluttered open to see sky-blue scales above her, two vivid violet eyes staring down at her. A thin bracelet rested in Aurora's jaws as she stood over Midnight. The animus glanced down to see that she'd been turned over on her back, with Aurora's talons piercing her chest.
Midnight let out a yelp as she sat up in alarm. She swiped her talons at Aurora, raking across her half-sister's chest, violet blood spilling from the wound. Aurora leaped back in surprise, jumping off Midnight.
"Stop it!" Aurora hissed with Midnight's invulnerability bracelet in her jaws, stumbling back. She placed her talons to the shallow wound Midnight had made, glaring as she worked to heal it up.
Midnight placed her claws on her chest and underbelly, expecting to feel pain where Aurora had stabbed her. Instead, when she brought up her talons, she saw no blood. She growled as she twisted her hindlegs out under her, getting up on all fours, her teeth bared.
"You betrayed me!" Midnight accused Aurora, stumbling woozily, eyes focused on the invulnerability bracelet. Aurora must have taken it off. She clutched at her underbelly again, still unsure why there wasn't any wound. "You tried to kill me!"
Aurora spat the bracelet out of her jaws, landing covered in spittle at Midnight's front paws. "I wasn't trying to kill you, you idiot, I was waking you up," she huffed, exasperated. "If I'd been trying to kill you, you'd be dead."
Midnight's heart raced as she picked the bracelet up, trying to shake off Aurora's spit. Careful not to take her eyes of her half-sister, she put it back on. She frowned. Her heart was still pounding, breath short, and it showed no sign of slowing down. "What did you do to me?"
Aurora rolled her eyes. "As I said, I woke you up. You shouldn't have tried to make a third enchantment. You fell unconscious, and I had to add something to your blood to get you back up again. It's why I took the bracelet off."
Midnight frowned. She really didn't like the idea of Aurora adding something to her blood. She glanced up to see a stone wall above her, lights dancing in the sky. Not far away, she spotted the ruins of the SkyWing palace, towers collapsed across the ground. They seemed strangely blurry, the distance between Midnight and the palace covered with an odd mist. It took her a moment for her to realize where she and Aurora were: they were on the outside of the arena walls.
"What happened?" Midnight asked Aurora, heart still pumping overtime. "Did we win? What's with all the mist?"
"We lost. The Empress got the Wishstone, and is using it to recreate your world," Aurora answered. She glanced around, dragging a talon through the air. "The mist is getting thicker, and once we're no longer able to see through it, that will be the end."
"There has to still be time to stop it!" Midnight said in alarm, flapping her wings anxiously. "We can't have lost yet!"
"Yes," Aurora sighed. "If there wasn't time, I wouldn't have bothered to try and wake you up."
Aurora took a few steps back, and pointed her talon to a crumbling section of the arena wall. Above it, Midnight's gaze landed on a bright light, almost blinding. As she squinted, trying to make out the figure within it, it focused into a crowned scavenger floating above the arena, a large white orb in her hands. Mists swirled around her, being thrown out in a spiral above Pyrrhia.
"That's . . . ?" Midnight asked.
Aurora nodded. "Empress Liliana."
Midnight tensed, glaring up at the Empress. She flapped her wings, about to take off and attack, when claws on her tail held her back. She turned around to see Aurora, keeping her from flying.
"Wait," Aurora said.
Midnight sighed, and rested her wings on the ground. The beacon of the Empress glinted out of the corner of her eyes. Every moment they wasted talking was a moment closer to the end of the world. "What is it?" she asked, flicking her tail impatiently.
"Listen to me," Aurora continued. "This time, you need to stick to the plan. You're offensively useless. You need to be my defense."
A twinge of anger rose up in Midnight. How come she was letting Aurora, of all dragons, tell her what to do? Her half-sister had helped destroy her family. Midnight didn't care if she'd had a good reason or not.
Yet, Aurora had been the one to take her out of the arena, and had woken her up, when she could have just let Midnight lie there, sleeping. Right now, maybe Midnight just had to put their parents' feud behind them. And against her own thoughts, Midnight felt a little bit of empathy for Aurora — having Torrent as her father had been hard enough for Midnight, even if he rarely showed up. How terrible would having Crystal and Calamity as Aurora's family have been?
Regardless, the two needed to be allies, at least for the moment. If they didn't stop the Empress, there wouldn't be a world left for them to fight in.
Midnight grimaced. "All right," she finally said. "I'm . . . sorry for attacking you earlier, and rushing forward. This time, I'll stick to your plan."
If Aurora accepted Midnight's apology, or even cared that she'd given it, she didn't show any indication. She took a step back, and dragged a talon along her scales. Immediately, grey ceramic armor began to form across her scales. A last line of defense, in case Midnight failed. Her wings spread apart, almost hitting Midnight in the snout. The Eye of Amethyst dangled from her neck, the pupil on it staring up at the blinding Empress.
"Let's go," Aurora commanded, wind picking up beneath her wings. Midnight lifted her own, only to feel a swirl of air beneath them, as Aurora created an updraft to pick her up. She sighed. This was it.
The two rose up over the arena walls, until they were eye-to-eye with Liliana, clutching the Wishstone, her eyes glowing a bright white. For a moment, Midnight was unsure if Liliana had even noticed the two approaching dragons, but as they neared, she turned her head, letting out a sigh.
"Are we really doing this again, Aurora?" the Empress asked, pulling the Wishstone closer to her. White light seemed to extend from the hand holding it, ropes pulling it in as it seemed to fuse with her skin. "I'm busy. I need to focus on creating our new world."
Aurora had no reason to reply. This time, she led, wind from behind pushing her and Midnight out towards the center of arena. Ceramic needles extended from her talons, hundreds of them splaying out as they jutted forward, piercing Liliana. With a flex of her talons, she changed the spikes' substance, and with a sudden blast of light, they exploded.
Bright orange light filled the misty air, and Midnight was forced to look away as smoke hit her eyes. A heat as intense as Inferno's wracked her scales, though she felt no pain. Sand flew up from the arena floor, exposing the metal rods that Aurora had placed earlier. More waves of light and heat careened through the arena, the walls cracking and crumbling from the force. Aurora hovered in place, the Eye of Amethyst keeping her from being blown away with them.
When it finally cleared, there was nothing left of Liliana, only the Wishstone remaining. The winds pushed Aurora forward, claws outstretched as she attempted to grab ahold of it, but with a flash of blue light, it was gone.
The Wishstone reappeared on the other side of the arena, Aurora grimacing as she saw bone, flesh, and skin reforming around it. Apparently, completely destroying her body wouldn't be enough to even delay the Empress enough to get the Wishstone from her.
In just a few moments, the Empress had fully reformed, eyes still blindingly white as she stared, like she was focused beyond Midnight and Aurora. There was another blue flash, and the Empress had reappeared behind Aurora, slamming down a finger against her armor.
This time, Midnight was ready. With a roar, she threw Aurora aside, crashing into the Empress, careening towards the ground. Hurricane-strength winds shot from above her, and Midnight wrapped her wings around the scavenger, the two of them flinging into the ground together, what little sand left being thrown up around them in a spiral.
Midnight rolled to the side to see the Empress impaled on one of the metal rods Aurora had made, piercing all the way through her ribs. It still wasn't enough. Liliana sat up, the rod snapping in two, and pulled it out from within her. Her arm swung back, and she flung the rod up at Aurora, still in the sky. A crack seemed to shake the air as it left her hand, a shockwave causing more of the arena walls to crumble.
Midnight leaped to the side, directly into the Empress's aim. She felt her heart skip a beat as the rod hit her instead, but harmlessly bounced off her wing membrane. Aurora landed in the ground behind her.
The Empress leaped, jumping at Aurora. Aurora placed out her talons, readying winds to force Liliana back, while Midnight reached out a paw, wrapping her talons around Liliana's torso. It came off in her talons, and Midnight let out a yelp of shock and disgust as she dropped the scavenger legs to the ground in surprise. She was about to apologize, only to see the Empress's legs reforming midair.
More spikes shot up from the ground, piercing Liliana and cracking as they slowed her down. She tumbled to the ground only for Midnight to jump on top of her, trying to hold her in place. Aurora backed away, running around the arena, over towards Inferno, creating pawprints in the sand.
"Hey, what are you doing!" Midnight yelled at Aurora. "I'm supposed to be defending you!" She yelped in surprise as the Empress disappeared out from under her, teleporting once to the center of the arena, then again towards Aurora. The Empress swiped down her hand not holding the Wishstone, ready for it to hit Aurora's armor . . . only for it to miss by a full tail-length.
"Stay back!" Aurora warned Midnight. Midnight suddenly felt herself lurch towards the center of the arena, like the arena floor had been tilted out beneath her. Sand started to fall from the sides of the arena, showering the center in a pile. Midnight squinted. She could barely make out what was happening on the other side of the arena, fog obscuring her vision.
The Empress teleported again, trying to hit Aurora. This time, she went too far, missing again. She tried again, about to hit Aurora in her tail. Aurora just swept it away, and the Empress whacked her own knee, causing the leg to fall off, rolling into the arena center as a new one form.
"What did you do?" Liliana asked Aurora, almost frantic. She tried teleporting again, but ended up completely off target.
"I realized how to nullify your teleportation," Aurora answered, with just the smallest smirk. "I added a lot of dense mass to the center of the arena. Just enough that the increased gravity throws your teleportation off."
Liliana's fingers tensed around the Wishstone as Aurora stepped back towards the edge of the arena, becoming only a shadow with the occasional glowscale lighting up in the fog. Aurora was running away?
The Empress shook her head, and let out a chilling laugh. "So what? You're far too late. Making it harder for me to teleport won't be enough to stop the Wishstone." She shifted her balance, leaning forward to stare up at Aurora, the flat arena feeling suddenly sloped from the change in gravity.
Aurora didn't move. Or if she did, the Empress couldn't tell. The fog had gotten thick, and it was difficult for her to see even the walls of the arena anymore. With an annoyed kick of the sand, Liliana teleported forward, trying to attack Aurora again. The shadow got closer, and Liliana walked up towards, the Wishstone glowing bright in her hand.
Then, the shadow split into two. Liliana tilted her head, unsure what was going on. The figures of two dragons walked down the arena, and it was a moment before the Empress could recognize them.
Inferno stumbled weakly, careful not to trip down the slope, while a hybrid held on to her paw, a dragon that Liliana hadn't met before. Ecru smiled as she sat back on her haunches, the bracelet around her foreleg matching Midnight's keeping her scales from burning.
"And what do you hope to do?" Liliana asked, unimpressed. "You can't stop this."
"But you can stop this," Ecru said to the Empress, one final plea. A faint orange glow surrounded Inferno's scales, casting light on the three moons hanging from Ecru's ear. She held out her other front paw, offering it to her. "Trustbreaker tells me he would forgive you."
Liliana laughed, shaking her head. She raised the hand not holding the Wishstone, bolts of lightning crackling within it, ready to strike them both. But before she could use it, Ecru jumped forward, pulling Inferno with her as she tumbled into the surprised Liliana.
Liliana felt a talon on her head, letting out a surprised yell. Her vision shifted, and suddenly, the three were no longer in the arena. Liliana felt her heart pump as she saw grass beneath her, the mist rising up from it. Her hand was no longer around the Wishstone, instead, she clutched a whimpering dragonet by the heart. Ash looked back up at her, shaking as she pulled him closer, black scars covering him. White strands of light wrapped around Liliana's arm, tying Ash's crumbling wings down, keeping him next to her.
"What is this?" Liliana asked, glaring at the SkyWing across the meadow from her. "What are you doing?"
"He's not yours," Inferno said, shaking her head. "This world isn't yours. Let him go."
"I'm not going t—" Liliana let out a yell, clutching her head in pain as she saw Ecru, rainbow lights dancing around the hybrid, whispering and laughing at Liliana. "STOP IT!"
Ecru walked forward, lowering her head until she stared directly into Liliana's eyes, the scavenger trying to look away. "Do you fear us?"
"GO AWAY!" Liliana screamed, unable to move. When she looked at Ecru again, the hybrid's sandy-brown scales had changed to a shade of black with just a hint of orange glowing through, her snout narrowing as her head and body grew larger. Faint teardrop scales rested behind her eyes.
"Liliana, please," Trustbreaker said. "This isn't right. You know that." He extended a talon, only for Liliana to slap it away.
"You agreed with me, once!" Liliana shouted. "You were on my side!"
Ecru changed again, her head narrowing as her snout seemed to be sucked into it, her face becoming flat as she stood up on two legs, now Liliana's height. Short black hair fell from the top of her head.
Liliana stared, shocked at who Ecru had become. "Father?" she asked. "But, you're—"
"I'm dead," he stated, nodding. "Lil, please. There's other ways to create the world you want. You don't have to—"
"I do!" Liliana screamed back, placing a hand around Ash's neck, the dragonet's eyes wide as she choked him. Tears fell from her eyes. "I tried! I spent decades on Antigonia, trying, and it didn't work! This is the only way! A world where you don't—"
Inferno suddenly leaped forward, grabbing Ash's tail. He let out a muffled cry as she tried to pull him away from Liliana, the ropes connecting Liliana and Ash suddenly twisting and writhing. Liliana felt the meadow disappear out from beneath her, and when her eyes opened again, flames and smoke filled her vision.
Screams pierced the air, and Liliana stared as her father clutched her hand, pulling her through the smog. A thatch house went up in flames in front of her stinging eyes. She tugged, trying to go back, but her father wouldn't let go of her hand, no matter how much she tried to pull away.
"Let me go!" Liliana yelled.
She tripped to the ground as her father pulled her away, scraping her knees against the grass. When she looked up again, pairs of black wings circled over the small village, the fire lighting them in the darkness. Terror and yells filled the night sky as a blast of flame fell down from above, setting more of the village aflame.
"Lil, we have to hurry!" her father said, getting her back to her feet, tears staining his eyes. "We need to get to the tunnels, now!"
Liliana sniffled as she turned away from her burning home, a sense of urgency finally taking over her panic. Her father pulled her as they ran through what was left of their hometown, chunks of wood falling down around them. Liliana felt embers thrown up in her face, yelping as she put a hand up to block them.
They turned a corner, running down a small alleyway. Liliana stared at the ground. In front of the two, her eyes landed on a badly scorched body, a human burnt beyond recognition, flesh peeled and cracking. She couldn't help but look. Had this been a friend? Someone she'd known? Her father tugged her back. She could only wonder.
Eventually, the cliffside the village had been built beneath came in sight. It hadn't been enough to protect them. Liliana spotted a few people, rushing into a small hole in the cliff face. Safety.
Liliana started to sprint across the last stretch, when she heard a cry, and her father grabbed ahold of the back of her shirt, pulling her back. Gusts of air whipped against her hair, and black wings descended into the space in front of her. Her heart raced. The largest dragon she'd ever seen was standing between the two humans and the tunnel entrance. His eyes were as black as his scales, his rippling back alone as long as the village square.
"It's quite hard to believe it was your whimpering species who killed the SandWing queen," the NightWing said, though Liliana hadn't understood the growls at the time. "I'll ask nicely: do the two of you have the scepter? No? A shame."
"Lil, when I say so, you need to run," her father said, stepping in front of Liliana. He pulled out a small blade from his side, barely even a sword. "Get to the tunnels."
The NightWing lifted a claw, as if he was comparing it to the sword. "Hmm. Really don't think that'll do much."
"No!" Liliana cried, running back to her father. "Please, don't leave me here!"
Her father didn't turn away, eyes focused on the NightWing ahead of him. "I'll meet you in the tunnels," he promised, even knowing he wouldn't be able to keep it. He pushed his daughter away again, taking a step forward, swinging the blade. "GO! NOW!"
Liliana's father suddenly rushed forward, blade out, the huge NightWing mildly surprised that he was attacking him, and not the other way around. He swung the sword, slashing at the dragon's claws, even managing to draw blood.
The NightWing swiped back as Liliana sprinted around the edge of the square. His tail suddenly swung out above her. She managed to duck into time, rolling beneath it and getting back up. The tunnel was almost right in front of her.
Her father dodged the hit, running beneath the dragon's neck. He lifted his sword up, trying to slice through the soft underbelly, only to let out a yell as one of the NightWing's hindpaws grasped ahold of him. The sword fell to the ground.
Liliana turned, unable to look away as she saw her father stare back. "DADDY!" she cried, standing at the front of the tunnel. Tears fell from her eyes, this time, not from the smoke. Her father smiled, trying his best to hide his terror.
The NightWing shook him up and down. "Nope. No scepter. And I can't say you look particularly tasty."
With a single clamp of his jaws, the NightWing bit off his head. A moment later, he spat it back out, Liliana screaming as it fell to her feet.
I have to create a perfect world, Liliana thought. One I can finally bring him back in. I won't let you stop me from doing that.
Smoke and tears filled her eyes, and the scenery changed. It was years later, and an older Liliana panted heavily, ducking behind a stone. Her bare feet felt sand on them, and she moved her hand to a blade, pulling it from a sheath. She grinned with excitement as moonlight glinted on it, and her other hand went to a vial. SandWing poison. She spread it over the blade, the poison dripping.
She turned around, peeking out from behind the rock. Three SandWings lay resting. They wouldn't know what was coming for them.
Liliana leaped out, carefully sneaking across the desert floor, her hands to the ground as she crawled. Her heart raced as she got closer to the three. She raised her blade as she approached the closest one. Where would she stab it? The heart? The brain?
Then, the SandWing's eyes opened, and the dragon let out a surprised roar. Liliana swung the blade, but the SandWing pulled her head back. The other two were instantly awake.
Liliana rushed forward, trying to stab the SandWing in the eye, but wasn't fast enough. The SandWing's tail swiped, barb almost stabbing Liliana herself, but she leaped to the side, only for the tail to whack her in the back of her legs. She fell on the sand, the blade falling from her hands.
She turned, trying to reach for it, but the SandWing was quicker. The blade was raised into the air three times Liliana's height, and the SandWing sniffed it.
"It's poisoned," the SandWing said, surprised. She squinted at Liliana, who'd turned, trying to run away. "SandWing poison. Hey, you think that's how they got Oasis?"
The sword was flung into the sky, far out of Liliana's reach, while a second SandWing pushed her into the ground, his talons wrapping around her, keeping her from moving. She dug into the sand, trying to burrow away, but the claws clenched up.
"Makes me wonder how it got the poison in the first place," the SandWing holding her grumbled, still groggy. "Ugh. I was having a good dream. What should we do with it?"
"Eat it?" the third suggested. "I heard they're not bad as long as you take the clothes off first and burn away the hair."
Liliana let out a scream as she felt talons pull on her hair, almost ripping it from its roots. She shuddered. Just like her father, this was how she was going to die.
Then, the moonlight suddenly was blotted out. The three SandWings looked up to see a pair of black wings overhead. An orange-tinted NightWing landed, his eyes focused on Liliana. She shuddered. It felt like the dragon was staring into her soul.
"What do you want, NightWing?" one of the SandWings hissed, waving her barb in the air.
The NightWing took a step back, nervously shifting his talons. "Please," Duskwind gulped. "She's afraid. Let her go."
"She?" the SandWing holding Liliana asked, poking her in the back with a claw. "The scavenger is our catch." He bared his fangs at Duskwind. "If you want it for yourself, you'll have to take it from us."
Liliana's eyes caught Duskwind's again. When she blinked, the two were somewhere different, years later.
A vast emptiness beyond all understanding. A void of nothing. Everywhere the two looked, there was but a blank slate. They looked back at each other, Liliana's hand and Duskwind's talons intertwined, the Wishstone held in them.
"What have we done?" Duskwind asked, his teeth chattering. "W-where did everything go?"
"Hey!" Liliana yelled, glaring down at the Wishstone. "You! Talking stone! What did you do?"
Liliana and Duskwind felt a whimper in their mind. I told you! Ash whined. It's not supposed to be used for this! I control the magic, there's no safeguards on it! You told me things and I didn't know and I wasn't sure what to do and then I got all confused but I had to do it and now—
"What happened!" Liliana asked, looking around at the nothing. "How do we reverse it?"
I don't know! Ash responded. I don't know if it can be reversed! Why didn't you listen! Why won't anyone listen to me!
"It's gone," Duskwind gulped, talons shaking against Liliana's calm fingers. "Pyrrhia. Everything. Everyone. It's gone, it's all gone."
Liliana stared into the nothing. Their whole world. She'd destroyed it.
"It's gone!" Liliana shouted.
The vision had changed again. Moonlight glimmered into the greenhouse, reflected and refracted through the glass panels. The Obscura took up the centerpiece, the throne pointed directly at the huge orb, like a giant version of the Wishstone.
Liliana stared eye-to-eye with another RainWing, her golden crown above her horns. Glory stared back at her, tail twitching.
"Are you asking me where it is?" Glory questioned the Empress. "I don't know. The only one who's been in here other than you and I was Duskwind. I don't know where he is either."
"I don't care about Duskwind!" the Empress snarled, pacing back and forth. "He's been unhelpful at best recently. I need the Wishstone! Where is it?"
Glory glanced over towards the Obscura, gesturing Liliana towards it.
Liliana winced. She should've thought of that. She stepped over to the orb, her scales turning grey as she placed her talons on it, thinking of Ash. The picture appeared on the surface. The Wishstone was over the sea, a NightWing clutching it in his talons.
"No," Liliana said, breath suddenly quickening. "No. Not Duskwind. He wouldn't—"
"It looks like he did," Glory pointed out. "Should I send dragons to apprehend him."
"He has the Wishstone," Liliana gulped, talons shaking it. "If he uses it . . . no, he wouldn't. He's too scared." She clutched her head, placing her paws beneath her horns as she got up on her hindlegs, shaking her snout back and forth. "Why? Why him? Why now? What did I do wrong? Why would he betray me?"
She shut her eyes tight, trembling. When they opened again, her hand rested on Duskwind's neck, on black scales.
"Lily—" the NightWing said, his pleading eyes one desperate, final attempt.
Liliana glared, anger coursing through her. He'd betrayed her. She wouldn't let him do it again. When she brought him back, after she'd made their perfect world, he'd forgive her for this. She'd make him.
Lightning shot up through her fingers, and Trustbreaker's eyes went wide as she stared up into them, frying his throat and insides. Rage and anger coarsed through Liliana's body. Hate. Not for anyone, but hate for this world, and every way it had hurt her. She let out a scream, and cracks started to spread apart through the vision, the dying Trustbreaker falling to the ground in pieces. And then . . .
Liliana opened her eyes. It was cold. White fog surrounded her, so thick she couldn't tell where she was. She tried looking around, but only saw a white light in her hands. The Wishstone, still attached to her. She brought it close, dreaming of her new world. She was almost there. It was almost reality.
Liliana tried to get to her feet, only to find she couldn't. She looked back, but couldn't see anything. She was being held to the ground by Aurora's gravity well. So this wasn't a vision. She was back in the SkyWing arena, though it had almost faded from existence. It wouldn't be long.
"It's too late!" Liliana yelled out into the fog. "I've won!"
If any of the dragons that had fought her were still around, they didn't reply. She could see nothing, hear nothing. Just the white emptiness, a fog that stretched over the world as the healing light of the Wishstone touched every piece of it.
Liliana laughed, a laugh of victory. Everyone else was gone. She was alone, all alone, and no one could stop her. She kept laughing, her voice echoing through the empty fog, the sound of it the only thing she could hear. She tried to shift her arms, but even her strength wouldn't cause them to budge. She stayed still, her head against the ground, the gleaming Wishstone full and round in her gaze, like Pyrrhia's fourth moon.
Her laugh started to falter, her vocal chords strained. Small tears welled up in her eyes, her laugh becoming choked, almost a cry. The mist grew thicker.
Then, she suddenly went quiet. A figure appeared through the mist. She wasn't alone.
A young dragonet shuddered as they slowly made their way towards Liliana, careful not to get too close to the gravity well, just enough so that Liliana could see their red and black scales, almost glowing in the light of the Wishstone. Skytaker trembled as they raised their head as high as they could, in a triumphant stare over Liliana.
"What are you smiling about?" Liliana asked the shaking hybrid. "Why are you smiling?"
Skytaker opened their mouth, pausing a moment before they spoke. "I-I p-promised," they smiled, almost a laugh. "I promised Ermine. I promised him."
Liliana stared at Skytaker for a moment, a long moment passing between the two as they slowly disappeared out of view, the mist so thick Liliana couldn't even see the dragon right in front of her.
Then something poked Liliana's ear. With the last of her effort, she turned her head as she felt a small piece of metal stabbed through it. An earring.
Her gaze fell upon an elderly cat, slitted eyes staring back at her as Sapphire fell from her neck, laying down next to her. For a moment, it seemed like the tabby was crying.
Liliana's eyes glazed over as her memories faded away, her desires vanished. The dim Wishstone rolled out from her hands. She smiled as she stared into the cat's eyes.
"Duskwind. You rescued me again."
Chapter 57Queen Sunny closed her eyes, as the ground beneath her shook. She opened them to see a flash of light and smoke, as a cannonball soared into the palace wall. Stone burst loose as it crumbled, falling to the ground in pieces, the fighting dragons below dodging it. A mist had risen up with the dawn sky, the figures of the fighting SandWings hazy.
"Aim higher next time, scum!" Rattlesnake hissed at the one of the soldiers commanding the Iron Dragons. "We're taking the entire wall down!"
Six-Claws glanced beneath his wing, checking to see if Sunny was alright. If she was disturbed, she didn't show it. The hybrid's expression was frighteningly emotionless.
"This is going better than expected!" Rattlesnake grinned as she bowed to Sunny, her tone immediately changing. "We'll bring this old dump down in no time!"
"It's going exactly as well as expected," Mallard tsked, like she'd been slightly offended by the comment. Rattlesnake ignored her.
Sunny let out a long sigh as another shot fired, crashing through another segment of the palace wall. At this point, most of this side of the palace was open to the air. Aloe's forces had defended, as expected, but they hadn't seemed organized as far as Sunny could tell. Just small groups of dragons, caught unaware, orders not yet received.
"It's going well," Sunny settled on. A tower started to crack, dragons beneath it shouting as they flapped out of the way. She wondered — was her mother's frozen statue still in the treasury? Would it be destroyed along with the palace? "With the palace gone, I guess that I'll have to get a new one made. This really is the end of the previous regime. Now, I'll have a chance to be a new queen, for a new Sand Kingdom."
"Way to think on the bright side, Sunny!" Rattlesnake smiled. "Just make sure to keep your promise to me." The threat there was implicit — break it, and the Iron Dragons will get used on whatever palace Sunny builds.
"I will."
Another shot fired, not far from the cracks in the tower. The shouts of dragons reached Sunny's ears as the tower finally broke of, falling to the ground in a huge chunk. Sand flew up into the air. Sunny squinted, trying to figure out if anyone had been under it. She couldn't tell with the mist in the way, her vision blurred.
"Hm," Mallard frowned, slightly annoyed. She shook her head. "It's gotten foggier. This weather isn't ideal for aiming, which is turning out to be a lot more difficult than I'd hoped. We should stop using the Iron Dragons until it clears."
"Really?" Rattlesnake groaned. "Aww. But it was just getting fun!"
Six-Claws turned, trying to catch Sunny's gaze. "I'm in agreement with Mallard. If we keep using them, we'll hit our own troops when they enter."
"That's fine," Sunny responded. Six-Claws felt himself tense up. She was fine with hitting her allies? Sunny gave him a glance, noticing his worry. "I mean, it's fine to stop them. We've done enough damage. We can get in now." She raised her wings, ready to take off towards one of the numerous holes in what was left of the wall. "Let's go. I want to find Aloe."
Six-Claws shifted from side to side. "Are you sure that's a good idea?" he asked. "It's probably best if you stay safe, out here."
Sunny shook her head. "Everyone else is fighting, risking their lives for me. I should do the same for them. Queen Oasis fought at the head of her army, not behind it."
"Yes," Six-Claws grimaced, "but—"
"I'll be fine," Sunny assured him, already knowing what he was going to say. But she wasn't Queen Oasis. "I learned how to fight, and I'll have the three of you at my side, protecting me."
Mallard opened her mouth, raising a talon. "Er, two of you, if you'd please, your majesty," she chuckled. "I don't think I'd be much help. Plus, I should stay out here in case the fog lifts and we want to start firing again."
Sunny nodded. "Two of you," she said to Six-Claws.
"Alright," Six-Claws sighed, realizing he wouldn't be able to convince her otherwise. "Let me at least get us some backup."
Sunny didn't protest, and Six-Claws called another half-dozen SandWings to his side. As Six-Claws explained what he wanted them to do, Sunny stared at the palace. Somewhere in this was Aloe. And once she was dead, this would all be over. Sunny could be whatever type of queen she wanted to be.
"Let's go already!" Rattlesnake huffed impatiently, her snout nudging Sunny's wing with a grin. "C'mooonnnn! It's boring out here. I can barely see the action!"
Rattlesnake was right. The fog had gotten even thicker. Sunny could barely see the walls of the palace, though the dragons directly around her were still visible.
"Yeah," Sunny agreed, pushing Rattlesnake away. "We should go." She took off, Rattlesnake behind her. Six-Claws gritted his fangs as he and the other SandWings joined them, trailing behind.
A moment later, the broken wall came within sight, dust still crumbling down from it. The group landed on the edge of a hallway, the sparse corridor cracked in two. Sunny glanced around as she walked forward. Where would Aloe be?
Her eyes suddenly spotted a SandWing on the other side of the corridor, the fog obscuring all but the dragon's outline, and she bared her fangs. Was it Aloe?
"Over here!" the SandWing called out to them. "Follow me!"
Sunny sighed. It wasn't Aloe. She started towards the SandWing, only for Six-Claws to rudely push her aside, rushing towards him. The SandWing let out a yelp of surprise as Six-Claws leaped on him, throwing him to the ground.
"He's not one of ours!" Six-Claws yelled back. He swished his tail around, until the barb was just a talon-length away from the SandWing's neck.
"Wait! Stop!" the SandWing yelled back. "I'm not here to fight!"
By this point, Sunny and the others had walked up to the the, the SandWing uncomfortably still beneath Six-Claws' talons, knowing that he could be killed in an instant. Sunny paused — it was true that he hadn't put up any resistance when Six-Claws had attacked him.
"Did Aloe send you here to surrender?" Sunny frowned.
The SandWing shook his head. "No. My name is Quill." He paused, glancing around, checking to see if there were any other dragons nearby. He grimaced — he couldn't tell with the mist pervading the palace. "I'm . . . I'm a spy. The Talons of Peace stationed me with Blister and Aloe during the War of SandWing Succesion. I was on their island for . . . a long time. Longer than I thought I would be."
"The Talons of Peace," Sunny snorted, her gaze narrowing. She brought her snout closer, baring her fangs. "I can't say that makes me trust you any more. Did you happen to know a dragon named Morrowseer?"
Quill shook his head. "No. I mean, I knew of him, but we never met. I worked under Clarity directly. I had nothing to do with the Dragonet Prophecy, I was just a spy. I want to help you win."
Sunny glowered, flicking her tail across the stone. He seemed to know more about the Talons than she would've expected, but it could still be a trick. That's what she would've expected from Blister. "And how will you do that?"
"Aloe is trying to hide on an upper floor," Quill explained. "I can take you to her. She's who you want, right?"
Sunny paused. She didn't like the idea of placing any trust at all in one of Aloe's soldiers, and one in the Talons of Peace at that. She felt herself tense as scales nudged her side. She glanced at the culprit — Rattlesnake again.
"We should follow him," Rattlesnake suggested. "If he's lying, well . . ." she licked her lips and waved her barb in the air, "I'll make sure he's the first to die."
"I'm not lying," Quill said.
Sunny considered it, unsure. His story did check out, and if he really was telling the truth, how could she pass up this opportunity? If he led them to Aloe, the war would be over, one way or another.
"Fine," she finally agreed. "But if you're trying to lead us into a trap, Rattlesnake gets her way with you."
Quill gulped as Rattlesnake beamed out him, flashing her talons. "This way," he hurriedly said, pointing his claw further along the corridor. "There'll be resistance, but I don't think Aloe has gathered all her forces yet."
Six-Claws slowly got up off Quill, letting the SandWing to his paws. Sunny stared as he walked off into the mist, the others following him. Betraying his own leader — it was dishonorable. Yet, she supposed that Aloe deserved a taste of her own poison. Refusing to fight on fair terms, sending an assassin, and ambushing the palace?
The walls of the palace seemed to enclose around them, rumbles as Sunny heard the occasional crack from pieces breaking off. The roars of fighting occasionally touched her ears, but with the fog everywhere, she couldn't see anything but the dragons around her. They were going in blind.
"It's lucky we have him," Six-Claws murmured. "We'd never be able to find Aloe in here otherwise."
"Too lucky," Sunny grimaced. She wouldn't ever trust the Talons of Peace again. She looked back to see the leader of the other Talons smiling, Rattlesnake's tail twitching, just waiting to be poked into someone. She was really enjoying this, far more than Sunny was comfortable with.
"I know you can't help but stare at me, but you might want to keep an eye ahead of you, your majesty," Rattlesnake suggested.
Sunny quickly whipped her head around, wondering what Rattlesnake had meant by that. Quill and Six-Claws had suddenly stopped, and in the fog ahead, Sunny thought she saw movement, blurred shadows gently floating through the mist.
"Is this a trap?" Sunny hissed at Quill.
Quill shook his head. "No! It's not! Aloe isn't here, she's up ahead."
Sunny crouched back, Six-Claws stepping in front of the group as the shadows moved closer. Neither party of dragons seemed to want to get close enough to the other, staying back hidden in the mist.
"We'll have to get past them," Sunny stated to Six-Claws. "We need to move ahead before Aloe changes location."
Six-Claws grimaced, but nodded. He swung his wing, gesturing the dragons behind him forward, and they marched towards the enemy forces. Sunny stayed directly behind Six-Claws. He didn't seem interested in letting her lead the charge.
It was only a few moments, and the other SandWings came into view. One let out a roar as they turned, also battle-ready. Sunny quickly judged the numbers, trying to figure out the positions and fighting styles of each enemy in turn, just like Jackal had told her to do. They had no leader, whereas Sunny's forces had her. She estimated she would win.
The two groups clashed, the lines mixing up. Whether the SandWing recognized her or not, one leaped at Sunny, talons out, aiming to kill. Before he could hit, Sunny blasted out a burst of flame, a small flare in the mist. The SandWing let out a yell, temporarily blinded as he turned, closing his eyes when he landed.
His claws didn't even touch Sunny, the nimble hybrid shifting her stance to the right. As he skidded into the ground, she jumped, landing on top of his back. He let out a surprised yell as Sunny wrapped her foreclaws around the larger enemy's neck, clutching around him as she twisted to the side. Her hindlegs went to his underbelly, all of her claws digging, piercing his scales.
The SandWing tried to shake Sunny off him, but every time he attempted to get back up, she pulled him back to the ground. Her talons dug in further, large scratches now running along his scales. He squealed, and suddenly whipped his tail in the air, trying to stab Sunny with his barb.
Use your opponent's body against them. Make it an extension of your own.
Jackal's words resonated through Sunny as the barb sailed towards her side. With a small twist at the last moment, she shifted her weight, pushing his own underbelly in the way. He let out an ear-splitting scream as he jabbed himself in the belly with his own barb, injecting poison into it.
Sunny loosened up, thinking the fight was over. A moment too quick: the SandWing pulled his barb out from the gash in his belly, and finally got out of Sunny's grasp, getting back onto all fours, Sunny now under her back beneath him. Through the pain, he charged forward, trying another attack.
The slightly surprised SandWing queen stretched out her hindclaws, ready to grab ahold of the soldier again with them, before the SandWing was suddenly thrown to the side, another dragon on top of him. He let out a yelp as he was shoved to the ground again, fangs sinking into his throat. His cries stopped just a moment later.
Rattlesnake smiled and stared at Sunny as she opened her blood-stained jaws, giving the neck of the dead soldier beneath her a slow lick. She put her claws on the SandWing's horns, jostling his head back and forth. "We fought together!" Rattlesnake grinned. "That means we're besties now!"
"Sunny, are you alright?"
Sunny glanced away from Rattlesnake to see Six-Claws, coming towards her. The short fight was mostly done. Sunny had been right — they'd won.
"I'm fine," Sunny answered, getting back on her paws. She looked back down, feeling something sticky on her talons. Blood. Not her own. "I told you I learned how to fight."
"Yeah," Six-Claws replied, not quite sure he was happy about that. "I saw a little. That's a lot like how Thorn fought."
Sunny frowned, glancing back to the dead SandWing, Rattlesnake still playing with his head. Was that what she wanted? She shouldn't have been surprised, since Jackal had taught both of them. "I guess." She looked back down the corridor. Was it just her, or had the fog thickened even more? "We need to keep going. We don't have time to tend to wounds."
Quill raised his head and popped back into view from beyond the fog, having fortunately survived the battle. "We're almost there. There's some stairs. I'll go up them first, so they're not expecting you."
Sunny's tail twitched. This felt more and more like a trap. "Fine."
Quill walked off into the mist, Sunny and the others following from as far away as they could while still being able to see him, which at this point, wasn't very far. He turned a corner, stepping around the bodies of a few cloaked dragons. Sunny squinted at them. What were they doing here?
Rattlesnake offered up an explanation without being asked. "Awwww, they died!" she tsked. "I was hoping they'd get Aloe's head for you."
"You should have told me you were sending assassins," Sunny muttered.
Rattlesnake shrugged her wings, staring up at Sunny soppily. "Sorrrryyyy," she apologized, not really sounding like she meant it. "It was supposed to be a surprise, your majesty. I thought it would've been a good early hatchday gift! Are you going to punish me?"
"No," Sunny sighed. She didn't like how Rattlesnake hadn't told her about them, but she supposed it didn't matter much. If Rattlesnake had asked, Sunny probably would've agreed. She just wanted this to be over.
Quill started up the stairs, casually walking up them. The others followed, trying to be as quiet as they could in the mist. Slowly, Sunny peeked her head over the edge of the next floor. She could barely see anything, except for a few dragons her and there. Aloe was supposed to be among them, but where was she?
"Where were you?" Aloe asked, frowning at Quill as she saw him approach, the dragons on the stairs hidden in the fog. "I didn't order you to leave."
"Sorry," Quill sighed. Not offering up an explanation. "For everything."
Aloe tilted her head, confused as to what he meant. Then, a roar sounded through the mist. A moment later, she was staring eye to eye with Sunny. Unlike the fear that she'd seen in Sunny's eyes the last time they'd met, now, there was none. Only coldness. Aloe clutched her necklace, stepping back as more SandWings appeared behind her. With a battle cry, they rushed forward, meeting Aloe's forces as barbs swung, claws flashed/
"Aloe, stay back!" Leopard shouted, pulling Aloe back into the mist as dragons ran towards them, meeting their own defenses. She turned to the SandWing princess, talons shaking. "You need to escape," Leopard gulped. "You have to get out of here. I'll position our troops here to cover you."
"What?" Aloe stammered. She shook her head, shuddering. "No. Please, no. I can't do this without you."
Leopard grimaced, wrapping her wings around Aloe, the mist so thick they see only the shadows of the other dragons around them, the shouts muted, like the two were the only dragons on Pyrrhia. "You can," Leopard smiled. "You're capable. I know that." She rubbed her snout on Aloe's, giving the princess a kiss on it. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. I'll see you soon enough."
Aloe whimpered, shaking her head as tears fell from her eyes. This was turning out all wrong.
Leopard gave Aloe a gentle push with her talons, unwrapping her wings. "Go! Now!"
Aloe hesitantly nodded, before turning around, scampering off into the mist. Leopard let out a pained sigh. She had to survive this. For Aloe's sake.
A moment later, Leopard looked back to see that Sunny had broken through the ranks, Rattlesnake and Six-Claws standing behind her. Leopard raised her head, lifting her wings in the air, fog wrapping around them to make her look larger. "Sorry," she said to Six-Claws, "I'm not letting you pass."
Sunny glared as she saw Aloe's pale tail disappear into the mist. "She's escaping," she hissed.
Six-Claws shook his head, giving a pained sigh. "Leopard," he pleaded. "You don't have to do this. You can surrender. We'll let her live. Right, Sunny?"
Sunny didn't reply. Six-Claws felt his throat go dry, tensing up. Please, Sunny, he thought. We have a chance at peace.
Leopard shook her head. "I do have to do this," she replied, not waiting for Sunny's response. "Unfortunately, I think this is what it's come to." She kept her wings raised. Aloe, please hurry.
"Ugghh," Rattlesnake snorted, rolling her eyes. "You two are so dramatic. I hate it." With a sudden flash of her tail, she pounced forward, jabbing at Leopard's wings.
Leopard was ready. She turned to the side as she folded her wings back in, grabbing ahold of Rattlesnake's neck and throwing her to the ground. Six-Claws made his decision, coming to Rattlesnake's defense, leaping at Leopard.
"Sunny, go after Aloe!" Six-Claws shouted as he tried to grab Leopard's tail, hoping to control her rather than hurting her.
Sunny nodded, and rushed off in the direction that Aloe had gone. A moment later, and she'd disappeared into the fog, so thick that Rattlesnake, Leopard, and Six-Claws couldn't see any other dragons in sight. The clashes and yells of the fighting around had become muted, dull murmurings, leaving only the three of them, all caught in the mists together.
Leopard leaped back as Rattlesnake got back to her paws, quickly glancing back and forth between the two. She lowered her head, keeping her claws outstretched in front of her. Both Six-Claws and Rattlesnake were experienced fighters. Leopard doubted she could win this fight — right now, her main goal was to keep the two from joining Sunny to go after Aloe. That, and staying alive. Six-Claws would accept a peaceful surrender from her, right?
Rattlesnake suddenly jumped forward, surprising Six-Claws as she rushed at Leopard again. Leopard yelped as Rattlesnake's tail whipped up, and ducked her head beneath the attack, the barb scraping against her horns. Rattlesnake immediately twisted her back around, stretching out her hind legs to kick Leopard in the side, talons drawing blood as she scraped the SandWing's neck.
Leopard pulled back away, opening her jaws to release a batch of flame, when Six-Claws rammed into her side, her fire harmlessly missing Rattlesnake. Leopard twisted as Six-Claws landed on top of her, wreathed in smoke and fog. She felt claws grasp her wingblades, trying to keep them pinned to the ground. Instead, Leopard lifted her hind paws, squishing them in between the gap between her and Six-Claws, and grabbed the inside of his thighs, causing him to let out a squelch of pain. His weight moved to the side as he instinctively tried to get away from the sharp talons, and Leopard took that moment to prop her wing beneath her, turning Six-Claws over onto his back.
She placed her claws at his neck, holding it in place by his throat. "Surrender," she growled. She didn't want to make do on the threat, but if it was Six-Claws or Aloe . . .
Leopard let out a sudden scream as fire hit her backside, scorching her sail. She rolled to the side, leaping off Six-Claws to get out of the blast of flame, wincing as she hit her burnt back against the stone floor. She got back on her paws to see Rattlesnake, stopping her flame as it started to hit Six-Claws instead.
Six-Claws winced as he got back to his paws. Leopard had taken the brunt of Rattlesnake's fire, but she hadn't been careful not to hit him. Not that he should have expected anything different from her.
"Mmm, you're more fun than I thought," Rattlesnake smiled, licking her fangs. "A nice appetizer, before the main event."
"If you try and hurt Aloe, you'll have a far harder time than you think," Leopard snarled. She leaped at Rattlesnake, swiping at the SandWing's neck. Rattlesnake ducked out of the way, shoving Leopard to the side. Leopard winced as she felt Six-Claws' talons rake her backside, and she turned, threateningly swiping her barb in his snout.
"Wouldn't be much fun if it was easy!" Rattlesnake laughed, taking the chance to attack Leopard herself. She bit down on the back of Leopard's neck, sinking her fangs deep into the SandWing's flesh.
Leopard let out a yelp, and moved, trying to pull away. It was to no avail, as Rattlesnake clamp held her in place while Six-Claws swiped at her side. She roared at him, grabbing onto his forelegs, only to notice that Rattlesnake's tail had swung up behind her, aiming for her heart. She closed her eyes while Six-Claws grasped back at her, unable to move. At least she'd bought time for Aloe.
Suddenly, Six-Claws jutted out his wing, whacking Rattlesnake in the snout. The surprised Rattlesnake let go, and Six-Claws used his own tail to bat Rattlesnake's away. A moment later, Leopard yelled as pain coarsed through her side, poison injected into her. She looked down to see Six-Claws' barb embedded beneath her wing.
Leopard's breath started to speed up as the poison spread, and she began to feel woozy. She tried to move, stumbling forward as Six-Claws pulled his barb out from her. A moment later, she fell to the ground, flat on her underbelly, her breath slow and quiet.
Six-Claws stared at her for a moment, then raised his barb into the air. Leopard's crimson blood dripped from its point. "Sorry," he grimaced. He hadn't wanted to do that.
"Is she dead?" Rattlesnake asked, poking Leopard with a talon. She scrunched up her snout from where Six-Claws had hit her. Her tail twisted, as she wondered if she needed to finish the job.
The fog around the three seemed even thicker than before. Not even a shadow of another dragon was in sight, and Six-Claws could barely even see Rattlesnake and Leopard anymore.
"I didn't hit her heart," Six-Claws replied. "She needs medical attention, as soon as possible." He grimaced as he turned away. "But we need to help out Sunny first."
As Six-Claws took a step into the fog, he suddenly froze up. His claws went to his throat, as blood poured down it. Pain suddenly coarsed through it. His airways tightened up, and his claws traced the outline of a barb. He turned his head, staring back at Rattlesnake in shock.
Rattlesnake smiled as she ripped her barb out from Six-Claws' throat. "She'd very much appreciate it if I did that, wouldn't she," she whispered, bringing her head up against Six-Claws' as blood started to pour from his neck. "It's quite unfortunate that Leopard managed to kill you in the fight, isn't it?" She flicked out her tongue as she gently placed Six-Claws' head on the floor, staring down at him to make sure she was the last thing he saw. "But casualties are to be expected in war."
Rattlesnake placed her talons on Six-Claws' eyelids, shutting them closed for good. She raised her head. Sunny would be grateful to Rattlesnake for this victory, and now, it just so happened that she had an open position for a new general.
Sunny ran through the palace, barely able to hear Aloe's clawsteps in front of her, much less see her. Her talons clenched up. She wouldn't let her escape. This war would end here, today, at any cost. After this, no more dragons would die for her.
"Come out and fight, me, coward!" Sunny yelled. She recieved no response from Aloe, just her clawsteps getting further away. She seethed. Aloe had been so willing to challenge Sunny to begin with, why wouldn't she now?
Sunny turned as Aloe did. A set of stairs rose up in front of her. So she was going up. Was she trying to escape? Or did she want Sunny alone? Either way, Sunny climbed the stairs. When she reached the top, she was in an oddly familiar room, though she couldn't quite put a talon on where it was, with most of it hidden behind mist.
She heard heavy breathing in the opposite corner, though the mist seemed to mute even the sounds. Sunny rushed towards it, only to hit a wall. She stared as she placed her claws on it, trying to figure out where Aloe had gone. She squinted as she saw heavy stone in front of it. It looked like this was an exit that had been blocked off.
Sunny's talons traced along a crack, her heart racing. She wouldn't let Aloe escape. Finally, she felt the crack widen, a small hole in the bottom where the wall and blockade had crumbled from the attacks on the palace. Sunny snuck beneath it with ease, and ran out on a balcony. She suddenly realized where she was: this was the balcony that Aloe's assassin had attacked her on.
The sound of wings beatings barely reached Sunny's ears. With a roar, the hybrid leaped forward, grabbing onto scales as Aloe tried to lift into the sky. Her claws held on tight to Aloe's hindlegs, and the two tumbled down to the cracked balcony together.
Aloe turned her head around, a frightened expression staring up at Sunny, pale scales lightened by the mist. Sunny let out another roar, swinging her talons down at Aloe's neck, aiming to slice through it. Instead, she didn't even cut through scales.
Sunny tried again, biting down at the SandWing's throat. Her teeth didn't cut, and she felt one crack against the scales. Aloe twisted beneath Sunny, trying to throw her off, and Sunny felt Aloe's tail whip up. She slammed a hind-paw against the tail, holding it to the ground so the barb couldn't move.
Sunny raised her head up as far as she could, and let out a blast of flame, the fog lighting up for a second as it engulfed Aloe's snout. Sunny shut her eyes tight as the backlash from the flame hit her, holding it for a few moments until she couldn't any more, her snout lightly burnt.
When it cleared, she opened her eyes. Aloe was still struggling beneath her, but was completely unharmed. The blast of fire had done nothing.
"Why won't you die!" Sunny growled, swiping her talons again. She thrusted her forepaws onto Aloe's throat, trying to choke her. Aloe just stared back as tears began to fall from Sunny's eyes, the Dragonet of Destiny hyperventilating as she attempted to throttle the life out of Aloe.
Sunny panted as her grip relaxed, and she felt a metal chain beneath her claws. That had to be it. Aloe had something enchanted that kept Sunny from hurting her. Before Sunny could try and tear it off, Aloe suddenly twisted her tail out from Sunny's hindpaw, and Sunny let out a yelp as the barb almost stroked beneath her underbelly. Aloe used her frontclaws to shove the smaller Sunny off her, immediately turning to get back on all fours.
Sunny reached after her again, only for Aloe's tail to whip, forcing Sunny to dodge. Stone crumbled, and Sunny saw Aloe leap from the balcony, her wings spreading wide. A moment later, and she was gone, swallowed up by the fog.
The fog thickened even more, and the sound of wingbeats faded. Sunny had failed. Aloe had escaped. A vibration shook through Sunny's claws as the the balcony began to collapse.
Sunny lifted up her claws, staring at them, the only thing left in the mist that she could see. They were coated with red blood from her previous fight, already starting to dry.
If you want to lead dragons, you have to show them your claws sometimes, beetle.
As the SandWing palace fell around her, Queen Sunny wondered if she had truly become her mother.
Chapter 58Aurora stared down at the center of the arena as the mist began to clear. The world was still around. She still had her memories. So, they had stopped the Empress. Pyrrhia had returned to normal.
More dragons came into sight. Ecru, her claws still around Inferno's paws. Midnight, on the other side of the tilted arena than Aurora. Tiger, still held in place by Glory. Scarlet, shaking as the mist rose. Skytaker, unconscious on the slope. And in the center: Liliana lay side by side with Sapphire, her eyes glazed over, her head still, with a permanent smile on her face. All of them had survived.
Sapphire wheezed, the aged cat unable to move, barely able to breath. Aurora walked forward, down into the center of the gravity well. When she reached the Liliana and Sapphire, she dug her talons into the ground, getting rid of the mass she'd added. Midnight let out a yelp of surprise as she felt herself thrown off balance.
Sapphire breathed easier, and the cat slowly got to his paws. Liliana did nothing but follow him with her eyes, a blank stare, the milky Wishstone resting by her hand. More fog lifted, and the rest of the arena was revealed, the RainWings who hadn't fled from the battle sitting around the stadium, watching, wondering what would happen now. For a moment, everyone was silent.
"Well, I suppose that's that," Glory sighed, breaking the silence, dropping Tiger.
The RainWing dragonet rubbed her neck before rushing over to Skytaker, going to check on them. The hybrid murmured something that Tiger tried to listen to, but didn't rise.
A few of the RainWings in the arena made small motions. Glory raised her head, extending her wing. "Stand down," she ordered. "We're surrendering. We lost."
"What happened?" Aurora asked Tiger demandingly. "What did they do to her?"
Tiger winced. Skytaker had asked her to keep this secret, but it was a bit too late for that. "Skytaker has an enchanted earring," she quickly explained, pointing to the small conch shell earring now piercing Liliana's ear, a bit over-sized for the scavenger. "It suppresses their memories of their time in the Sky Kingdom. Specifically, their time spent trapped in Queen Scarlet's prisons. They'll be alright, this isn't the first time this has happened. They're just in a little shock."
Queen Scarlet raised her head, upon hearing her name mentioned. She stretched her wings out, finally freed from the vines. Tiger turned to glare at the SkyWing queen, so full of hatred that even Scarlet flinched, covering up the un-melted side of her face.
"It's my dragonet!" Scarlet snarled, finally regaining a little bit of her normal composure. "I'm free to do with it what I wish! I didn't give it permission to have a name."
Tiger bared her fangs, causing Scarlet to let out a short squeal and jump back.
Glory flicked her tail. "You know, since the Empress was defeated, that means I'm in charge of whatever is left of Antigonia now." She squinted at Scarlet. "Which means I don't need to keep the annoying SkyWing who keeps screaming at me alive any longer." She opened her jaws, tilting her head, threatening a venom strike.
Queen Scarlet let out another scream, scrambling away until she bonked against the arena wall. She hid her snout beneath her wings, trying to protect it. "AURORA, SAVE ME!" she cried out. "SHE'S GOING TO MELT MY FAAAACCCCEEEEE!"
Aurora tensed up her talons. She'd had enough of being ordered around by this infuriating dragon. She glared at Queen Scarlet, a wind picking up around her. "Shut up, before I kill you myself."
Queen Scarlet squeaked in terror, her good eye going wide. "You're my advisor! I'm the queen! Y-you can't disobey me. I'll fire you again!"
Aurora glanced over to the ruins of the SkyWing palace, and the pupil on the Eye of Amethyst looked up at the hybrid. "You're not currently queen. You were deposed by the Empress. You're unimportant now, and I will deal with you later. If you know what's good for you, keep quiet."
Scarlet whimpered, but did as Aurora asked. There were no guards around her, and she was surrounded by enemies that could kill her in an instant — or more worryingly, melt off the rest of her face. Using the little self-control she had, she decided to hold her tongue.
Ecru let go of Inferno, and walked across to the center of the arena. Liliana still hadn't moved, and Sapphire purred as he saw her. She bent her head down towards the Wishstone, and reached her claws to pick it up.
Aurora noticed her out of the corner of her eyes, and flicked her tail. Ecru yelped as spikes suddenly rose up around the Wishstone, almost stabbing her through the paw.
"I'm not letting anyone use it," Aurora growled, giving Ecru a warning stare.
Ecru shuffled back quickly, frowning. "I wasn't planning on it!" she protested. "I just wanted to move it away from the Empress!"
"Yeah!" Midnight hissed, making Aurora turn around to see her, teeth bared. "Don't you dare threaten her, or I'll . . . I'll make you pay."
"You wouldn't be able to," Aurora stated, keeping her eyes locked on Midnight. She knew the composition of Midnight's bracelet — she'd made it herself. Even moderately injured from the fight with the Empress, she could use that to her advantage. Winds whirled, blowing against Midnight's scales, pushing her back.
"Wait, stop!" Inferno cried out, rushing up between Aurora and Midnight. She looked to each of them in turn. "Both of you, please, don't fight! We won, right?"
Midnight stopped trying to move forward, and Aurora's winds grew lighter, but neither seemed quite willing to back down yet.
"How about this?" Inferno asked. "I'll take the Wishstone until we figure out what to do with it. Ash is - isn't - was my brother anyways, and I had him for years. Any objections?"
Queen Scarlet coughed, and opened her mouth, about to say something. Aurora seethed, and turned to glare at her. "Well, I thin—"
"No one cares what you think!" Tiger yelled back. She opened her jaws, jutting her fangs up, and suddenly, venom shot out. Queen Scarlet screamed in terror, staring as she saw it flying towards her, unable to move in her fear.
The venom fell short, about a tail-length away from Queen Scarlet. The SkyWing queen stared at it.
"A warning shot," Tiger growled, her stripes turning dark red. "Next time, I won't miss you."
Inferno let out a sigh of relief, and looked back at Aurora. She hadn't said anything about whether she was willing to let Inferno take the Wishstone or not. Inferno smiled, and slowly walked towards the center of the arena, reaching down towards the Wishstone, Aurora's eyes focused on the fireborn.
As Inferno moved her claws towards the mess of spikes surrounding it, Aurora didn't make any move to stop her. Instead, the spikes retreated back into the ground. Inferno held her breath as her claws wrapped around the surface, a tingle of magic flicking through her body.
The surface of it started to glow, and Inferno shut her eyes. Aurora cautiously hesitated. A moment later, and more white light spilled out of the Wishstone, coalescing in the shape of a young dragonet. When Inferno had opened her eyes, her talons were gently grasping the glowing heart of a translucent Ash. The salmon dragonet's scales were no longer covered in burns, and as he stretched out his wings, the membranes were whole. He stared back up at Inferno.
"I'll be taking care of you from now on," Inferno smiled. She carefully opened her claws, and the Wishstone heart hovered in place, white lines extending from the points of Inferno's talons to wrap around the stone. The young Ash turned his head, looking around nervously at the myriad of dragons staring at him.
Midnight glared at Aurora before turning to look at the Empress. She hadn't changed her expression at all, still just staring at Sapphire. "So, er, what do we do with her?" Midnight asked.
"Can you remove her powers?" Inferno asked Ash. "Please?"
Ash thought for a moment, before nodding. "I can," the dragonet said. "If you will it."
"And is there a chance you'll accidentally destroy the world?" Midnight quickly added. "I don't want that."
"No," Ash replied. "There's no chance of that. Not with something that small."
Removing her powers is hardly small, Midnight frowned. We couldn't even manage to hurt her with them.
"Alright," Inferno responded. "I'll try." She closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. The strands of white rope between her and Ash's heart seemed to glow brighter. For a moment, Midnight had to look away as Ash glimmered as bright as a moon.
"There," Ash said, after the light had faded. "I did it. They're gone."
Tiger turned to Liliana, narrowing her gaze at the scavenger. "That's not enough," she added. "She's done a lot of terrible things. She deserves to be punished. Maybe even executed."
Midnight stiffened up at the idea of that. Did they really need to kill her? What good would that do? If they'd had to kill her to stop her, then Midnight wouldn't have had a problem with that, but now, she was defeated. There wasn't anything she could do to hurt them anymore.
"Execute her?" Glory asked, tsking at the notion. "Why? She's done a lot of terrible things, but sometimes you have to do that, to make peace and stability. Antigonia wasn't an easy place for that to happen in, and she did the best job she could."
Ecru winced. "Yeah, I really don't think there's much point in executing her," she gulped. "She can't do anything, not without her powers. She's just a normal . . . scavenger now."
"We could make a compromise," Midnight quickly suggested. "I don't like the idea of her going free, after all that she's done. Maybe we can put her in a prison, like what most kingdoms do." She couldn't help but remember what purpose the arena she was standing in normally served. Just thinking about how many dragons had been killed here made her sick. She wondered how awful Ecru must be feeling right now.
Tiger snorted. "You would be saying that if Deathbringer had killed Ecru," she retorted.
Midnight flinched. "That's not true," she muttered, somewhat offended at that. Yet, she suspected Tiger was right. Had Ecru been killed by her, Midnight would likely be tearing Liliana's throat out right now.
"That still wouldn't make it right to kill her back!" Ecru protested. "Even if she had killed me. That sort of revenge just creates a cycle of violence that never ends."
"How many dragons do you think she's killed!" Tiger huffed. "How many do you think she would have killed, gotten rid of in her attempt to remake Pyrrhia! She needs justice done to her, and there's no one other than us on Pyrrhia who's able to do it!"
"That's not justice," Midnight growled back. "That's just murder. If we want justice, we take her back to Antigonia and let the dragons and scavengers there decide. Or, we let one of the queens here ch—"
Midnight jumped as she heard a sudden squelching sound. The dragons all turned, shocked to see that stone spikes had thrusted up into Liliana, impaling her in half a dozen places. Red blood ran down the stone as her head dangled lifelessly.
"Settled," an exasperated Aurora sighed, not particularly interested in this conversation. "I killed her. Is everyone happy?"
Midnight tensed up, her talons raking against sand and stone. "Why did you did that!" she hissed, anger welling up in her chest. "We were talking! We were going to decide! It's not justice if you just murder her!"
Aurora shrugged her wings. "I don't want justice. I just don't want her interfering with me."
"You have no right to decide that!" Midnight snarled, taking a posturing step towards her half-sister. "Of course you're going to go around, just killing whoever you like."
"Yes," Aurora responded, turning to Inferno, not particularly caring for Midnight's criticisms. "Inferno. If you misuse the Wishstone, I will kill you, just as I killed her. Understood?"
Inferno gulped, glancing at the floating Ash, at first taken aback by the threat. She stared at Aurora, and saw. The hybrid's eyes weren't full of anger, or fear. She didn't want to have to kill Inferno. Instead, Inferno saw . . . trust.
Inferno nodded. "I understand," she replied, giving Aurora a cautious smile. "You're putting a lot of trust and faith in me, by letting me have the Wishstone. I won't let you down. Thank you."
Aurora blinked, like that had been the answer she'd been expecting. "Good."
Aurora stretched out her wing, placing the end of her membrane over Liliana's corpse. Sapphire immediately leaped up on it, climbing Aurora's wing up to her back. When he'd leaped up between her horns, Aurora unfurled her other wing.
"Scarlet," Aurora snarled. "With me."
Queen Scarlet lifted her head with a jolt, and eagerly nodded. A moment later, and the two had lifted off into the sky. Sapphire turning his head, as if to say a goodbye to Inferno.
"Wait, we can't just let them leave!" Midnight huffed. "I'm not letting her get away with this." She opened her wings up, trying to take off after the two, only to be pushed back down by a strong wind. Midnight bared her fangs as she tried again, unable to get aloft. This isn't over.
"It's alright," Ecru said, staring back after Aurora. Their alliance was over.
Tiger walked up to Liliana's corpse, and slowly pulled Skytaker's earring out from the scavenger's ears. After cleaning it off with her tongue, she went back to Skytaker, putting it back on the murmuring hybrid. Part of her was glad they'd been mostly unconscious while Queen Scarlet had been around.
"Ahem," General Glory spoke up, getting the others' attention. "Now that that's done, if I could make a suggestion, there's a large army of RainWings in this world that don't belong here. I think it's in our mutual interests that they go back."
Skytaker murmured as they raised their head, squinting as the light focused. They looked up at Glory. "Is Ermine . . . ?"
"He's alive," Glory quickly responded. "Darkstalker too. Both are being held in the dungeons, and no harm has been done to either of them."
Skytaker smiled, relieved. "So he can come back. Like he'd wanted to."
"Hm," Midnight said, thinking about Glory's suggestion. "Antigonia will need new leadership, won't it." She turned to Inferno, eyes lighting up as she had an idea. "Hey! You should give the Wishstone to Darkstalker and his rebels!"
"No!" Tiger, Skytaker, and Ecru all said in unison.
"D-Darkstalker?" Inferno gulped, staring at Midnight in shock. "You mean the one with the evil scroll that we had to keep from Torrent so he wouldn't accidentally awaken and wreak havoc on Pyrrhia?"
"Yes that Darkstalker, but the Antigonian version of him," Midnight answered. She looked around at the others, all staring at her in shock at the idea. "He's not that bad! He's not evil! He helped us!"
"Yeah, but he's not that good either," Skytaker mumbled.
Ecru winced. "I have to agree. No offense, Midnight, but giving the Wishstone to him is a terrible idea."
"Fine," Midnight huffed, throwing her forepaws up in the air.
"You're right about Antigonia needing new leadership though," Tiger pointed out. "I think it will fall into chaos without everyone being frightened of the Empress."
"I know it's not my place to propose someone," Glory spoke up, "even if it is my world, but why don't you choose the SkyWing? You all trusted her with the Wishstone to begin with."
"Me?" Inferno squealed, shocked at the idea. "Oh. Are you sure? I really don't think I'm fit for the job. I'm not sure I could lead a kingdom, much less an entire world."
"I think you could do it," Skytaker said in agreement. "I didn't know you for that long, but you fought against Calamity and the Empress. You've been through a lot, you're kind, and you're not power-hungry like Liliana or Darkstalker. Of everyone here, you're the most fit for it."
"Um, I think you'd be a very good leader," the young Ash added, nodding. "You wouldn't hurt or control me like Liliana or Calamity. I trust you."
Inferno thought about it for a moment. Maybe they were right. Maybe she would be a good leader for Antigonia. But she wondered — did she want to be? She'd have to leave Pyrrhia behind. She'd have to go to a new world, with new dragons and scavengers, and different problems. It wouldn't be easy. But she'd be able to help everyone there. Where the Empress had forced everyone into an unsteady peace with fear, Inferno could teach them to love. To show them other ways than controlling others, the way Liliana had controlled Ash, and Ash had controlled Inferno in turn. She'd have a chance to change Antigonia from how she'd seen it in Liliana's and Ash's memories. It would be hard, but if she succeeded, it would worth it.
"Alright," Inferno finally said, smiling. "Antigonia, here I come." She squinted at Ash, drifting in the air. "Er, Ash, how do I get me and all the RainWings to Antigonia?"
"Just think it," the small Ash answered. "I can guide you through it. And all of you will be back."
"Yeah," Inferno said, taking in a deep breath. A different new world. Far away from Pyrrhia, if there even was any measure of far. "Um, Skytaker, Tiger. I guess this is goodbye. Tell Tsunami I'm not going to end up joining the academy afterall. Oh, and if you see Toxin or Slate, tell them I'm alright."
"Polar too," Tiger quickly added. "Oh yeah, he's not dead. Just a little . . . crumbly now."
"That's good news!" Inferno laughed. Slate would be glad to hear that.
Tiger waved her talons soppily. "Well . . . goodbye."
"Bye!" Skytaker added. "You're welcome in the Silver Winglet whenever you want, okay!"
Inferno grinned. "I'll make sure to visit." She looked back at Ash. "So, just will it, right? And we'll all go back?"
"Yeah," Ash answered. "Back to Antigonia."
Inferno nodded, and closed her eyes. She tried to will it, and the light between her claws and Ash got brighter. White light seemed to fill the arena, a few of the RainWings yelping as the glow covered their outlines. Inferno smiled. Goodbye, Pyrrhia.
When the light had faded, they were all gone. The arena suddenly felt empty, with just Midnight, Ecru, Tiger, and Skytaker remaining.
Midnight let out a tired sigh, opening her wings. "Well, I guess that's over," she remarked, almost surprised. Ecru nodded in agreement. Midnight turned to the dragonets. "I think it's time to you two back to school. I'll bet the teachers are all worried sick."
"Gazelle will be so happy to see us again," Ecru remarked.
Midnight smiled as the morning sun shone down over the ruins of the palace. "I have to admit, I'm already starting to miss our tiny home in Crosswinds. I wonder if they still have crocodile at the market. It's still in season, isn't it?"