Chapter 1

Kestrel blasted fire, and Pyrite had to dive, rolling across the rough stone floor, to avoid the scorching flames. Kestrel might have been a bit nicer to her than to the other dragonets, but it didn't mean she went easy on her.

Pyrite was losing, and that wasn't good. She had to win, or at least last for a while longer in the fight. Though she lived with the other Dragonets of Destiny, she could tell that she wasn't fully considered one of them. Webs often ignored her, and the other dragonets had bonded with Glory, meaning they shared the feisty Rainwing's dislike of Pyrite. Hence, she had to prove herself.

Pyrite breathed out smoke, and lunged forward, dragging her claws along Kestrel's side as she hacked and struggled to see through the smoke.

Pyrite worked hard, every day. She studied longer, fought harder, dedicated all her time to her studies, all in an attempt to prove herself. Yet, nothing worked.

The smoke thinned, and Kestrel pinned Pyrite down, pressing her claws into Pyrite's throat until she sighed and accepted her defeat. One day she would defeat Kestrel, but she didn't like how far away that day seemed.

Pyrite stood, brushing soot from her carmine-colored scales, and trudged back to her room. She shared the cave with Sunny, who was kind, Tsunami, who was not, and Glory, who despised her.

Currently they were all in the library, so she had the room to herself. A small stream ran through the cave, and she used its water to wash away the rest of the blood and ash on her scales. Then she stomped over to the wall, and angrily scratched a line, signifying another defeat. Hundreds of such scratches decorated the wall, dampening Pyrite's mood further.

She glanced out the doorway to the library, but decided that she'd wait until everyone else was gone. She laid down, deciding to get some sleep before she went to the library.