5,002 AS. 10 years since the War of Sandwing Succession began, 10 years until it is prophesied to end by the Dragonet Prophecy, 3 years until the Brightest Night.

"Losses on all fronts have been catastrophic, we cannot continue like this. We need reinforcements!" The speaker hissed to the officers gathered around her.

"We were already planning on sending another draft out across the territory we still control, what little there is. Would that suffice?" One offered.

"With the breeding program that the Queen implemented near the start of the war, it should be enough." Chimed another. One of the junior officers looked distraught and unconvinced.

"This will be horrible…"

"What do you mean?"

"The death toll of course! What we are forgetting is that every time we call a conscription, half the recruits are dead by the end of their second battle! If we do this it will be a slaughter!"

"Well, at least there is a silver lining. Our spies report that the other Kingdoms likewise suffer a shortage of soldiers and are therefore likely to begin their own drafts." Mentioned an intelligence agent. "So from a tactical standpoint we will not be at a disadvantage."

"But so many will still die!" The junior officer all but shouted. There was a brief pause before one of the senior officers stepped forward.

"This is war. Death is inevitable, there is nothing that can be done about it. However every dragon must serve the Kingdom to the best of their abilities, simple as that. If you cannot accept that and learn your place, your services will be required elsewhere."

Talonore was cold. Talonore was always cold this time of year. Situated on the coast against the northern border with the Sea Kingdom, the Sky Kingdom's third largest city was significantly more northward than much of the Ice Kingdom. Snow was not an uncommon sight well into what was supposed to be the Summer months, but this evening it might as well have been a blizzard.

High above the city a crimson dragonet glided across the valley that constitutes the heart of the city towards the manor on the western cliff. The violent wind and sleet threatened to knock him from the sky, however he managed to roll safely onto a balcony.

As Cyclone stumbled into the manor he shook the water and snow off of himself, and made note of the rooms around him as he passed through. The walls were covered in vines and moss, a deliberate aesthetic by the Duke, and despite Talonore's prominence as Pyrrhia's largest gold mining city there were no flashy or expensive decorations. He noticed that there were fewer guards now, likely sent off to support the war effort.

He made his way through the manor, feeling the eyes of every servant and guard bore into him. Eventually, he came to his destination, and as he stood in front of the large wooden doors he took a deep breath to steady his nerves, pushed open the doors, and stepped forward.

"You're late." the Duke said flatly as Cyclone crept into his study, causing him to freeze for a moment. Duke Solar, the same Duke that ordered a mine to be collapsed with the miners still inside to prevent it falling into enemy hands. The same Duke that had a village torched for protesting the war. Cyclone's father.

"I-I'm s-sorry, it wo-" Cyclone stammered out.

"Ensure this is not a mistake you repeat. However that is not why I brought you here." Duke Solar interrupted while regarding his son coldly. The Duke looked quite similar to his son, both were crimson with a stripe of orange scales around their left eye running down their neck to their shoulder. Cyclone felt it made himself look kind of ridiculous, however on his father it alooked downright threatening as he was stared down.

After a brief pause Duke Solar continued.

"I have sent out this season's draft letters throughout Talonore and the Duchy as a whole, here's yours." With that, his father flicked a sealed envelope towards Cyclone who barely managed to catch it in his surprise at his father's bluntness.

"F-father… w-with all due respect… I-I'm not sure this is the best idea. I mean-" Cyclone froze as he glanced up from the letter in his talons back at his father, the words dying on his tongue. If looks could kill, the one his father gave him would have made him drop dead instantly.

"I will not allow any of my dragonets to be a coward. You will report to the training grounds tomorrow morning at sunrise. There will be no debate here." The Duke conveyed in a voice that indicated Cyclone was testing his patience. After glaring at his son briefly Duke Solar made a shooing motion before turning back towards several scrolls that Cyclone had missed before.

Before heading off to sleep for the evening Cyclone took a detour to the same balcony he landed on earlier in order to look out over the city. The scars of war were visible everywhere, ruins, rubble, burnt out husks. 10 years of war had not been kind to any major city in Pyrrhia, let alone a border city known for having the largest gold mines on the continent. It would not be too inaccurate to count the years of the war by how many battles or sieges Talonore had experienced over its course. The city was nestled in a valley, with its outermost edges climbing up the mountains on either side. The wealthy and fortunate were relatively safe where they lived higher up on the mountains due to the extra defenses concentrated around them, as is normal in any Skywing city, while the poor or the unfortunate were stuck in the bottom.

"How long can I possibly hope to last at the front? I can't fight!" he muttered to himself before turning back inside.

In the trough of the valley a dark red dragonet trudged through the harsh weather, she had patches of black scales that could easily be mistaken for scorch marks, and also had several pale scales speckled on the undersides of her wings. Sparrow was nearly alone in the street as she dragged a bag of cacti behind her. The cobblestone streets were slick with ice and slush making walking difficult, meanwhile the ferocious snow and freezing rain could prove potentially dangerous if anyone actually tried to fly through it.

Nonetheless, Sparrow was keeping her head down, no need to draw attention to herself after all. Despite her best efforts the few dragons she did pass glared at her as she passed. With each dragon she passed she felt a spike of fear, Skywing culture was not known for being tolerant of anyone significantly different, dragonets usually being killed shortly after hatching if they looked off, and if her mismatched scales didn't signal her as different, her purple right eye certainly did.

Eventually she managed to drag the cacti to her destination: the city's eastern armoury. The quartermaster on duty gave her a glare while he counted the cacti to ensure that she didn't steal any during transit. Once he was sure, he reluctantly gave her the meager payment of a couple smaller coins before sending her on her way.

It was well past dark by the time she stumbled up to her door. She was so exhausted from dragging supplies around all day that she nearly missed a couple of letters pinned to the door itself. After carefully removing them, she took both inside, placing them on a table while she went about cleaning up.

Sparrow looked around to see if she was alone as she did every day, but it seemed her mother had not returned yet. While this wasn't unexpected, though it was still disappointing, it had been months since she had last been back in the city.

After a defeated sigh, she turned to the letters she had discarded earlier. The first one brought her hopes up immediately, it was a letter from her mother which she excitedly tore open.

My little Sparrow,

I hope this letter finds you in good health. My most sincere apologies for not sending a letter sooner, things have been getting a bit hectic at the southern front. Moorhen's forces have been trying to make a push north. It was nothing we could not handle. I hope things are going well in Talonore, it tears me up that I'm not there to help protect you, however I have faith in it's defenders nonetheless. I am afraid you will not hear from me for a while for reasons I cannot discuss, however I assure you I will stay safe. I look forward to when I am granted leave.

Sincerely,

Agate

Sparrow smiled as she read it. While it had indeed been a long time since she had heard from her mother, and although she was disappointed her mother wouldn't be writing again for some time, she was relieved that she was at least alright at the time of writing.

In a much better mood she opened the second letter and froze, all of her good feelings disappearing as quickly as they initially appeared.

"I am going to die." the dragonet whispered to herself. Sparrow stood in the middle of the room staring in disbelief at the letter in her talons. She needed to reread it several times over as she could barely comprehend what it said.

Dear Recipient,

You have been chosen for a great honour. Her majesty, the exalted Queen Scarlet has put out a call for volunteers to fight for glory in the war. You have been selected for this grand privilege. You are to report to the training grounds in Talonore tomorrow at sunrise, failure to appear will be considered desertion, and will be treated as such. Do not bring any personal effects. Everything you need will be provided to you. Remember, you are doing this for Queen and Country, make them proud!

Signed,

Duke Solar

Lord of Talonore

Sparrow retreated to her room and took the letter to her desk. Volunteers? She thought to herself in shock, she had seen posters calling for volunteers. She had made a point of avoiding anything to do with the war, after all, her mother was already a soldier, did a family really need to contribute everyone to the frontlines?

She then scowled in anger as she realized that this was the Duke's way of conscripting those under his rule. She was lost in thought as she stared out up the mountain her home was situated at the base of.

As she sat there, she mulled over her options. She could try and escape, but she had no idea where she would go. Everyone had heard rumours of various anti-war groups such as the Talons of Peace, but she had no idea how to contact them, or if they would even accept her into their ranks. Then she thought about her mother, what would happen to her if Sparrow deserted? Queen Scarlet and much of the nobility, likely including Duke Solar, were not above punishing families as a whole for the crimes of their members. She also couldn't think of a way that she could get out of serving while also remaining inside the law, the evidence of that fact clearly laid in front of her with the Duke's seal on it. This left only one option, to actually go to training. The thought alone made her sick to her stomach.

She continued to stare off while contemplating what this meant for her life now but eventually despite the despair she managed to convince herself that it was probably in her best interests to go to sleep.

And then the dream came.

She was in the middle of a field. At least that is what she thought it was, she could not see the ground, it appeared to be a dark void. There was a snow storm, the snow was so strong it was difficult to see anything at all. With one exception, the sun. The sun was much bigger than it normally was and it's light cut through the snow like a knife. Despite its increased size, she felt no heat from it, only the freezing cold of the snow. It was as if the sun had abandoned her and was simply watching for its own reasons.

Off to her side movement caught attention. She turned just in time to see an orange strip of fabric get blown into what appeared to be a tree, yet when it hit there was a resounding CRACK as the branch snapped off, however when she blinked both the tree and the fabric were gone.

As she continued to look around she noticed other strange occurrences within her dream: a flame burst to life before sizzling out, an unknown mountain seemingly collapsing in the distance, a splash of red blood, and two birds that she couldn't tell the species of, one took flight when it saw her, and the other was frozen and partially buried in the snow.

As the cold seeped into her, the last thing she saw before waking up was the sun, fading into the storm.