"Hello? Is there anyone in here?" she asked, stepping into the room. It was almost identical to Clay's, although the floor seemed a bit more well-worn and there was a bench pushed up against one wall. She couldn't see anyone in the pit below though, but the shuffling of wings meant there definitely was someone. Who she'd probably just woken up. Her eyes darted nervously to the winch that'd cap off the pit before they spoke.

"W-huh? Who's that?" they said, in a voice which could only belong to a young dragonet. She shivered at the implication but steeled herself and peered down into the pit. There were two SkyWing dragonets down there, amidst a collection of toys and miniature furniture. One, whose scales were so dull as to be more gray than red, was staring right back at her. The other was still asleep, but barely red at all. Her scales were mostly whitish, fading to orange away from her core and with the slightest hints of red. "Do I know you?" the dragonet asked.

"Probably… not? I'm Peril, the champion from the arena." The dragonet's face showed no sign of recognition, but she ignored it. "Sorry, I'm having a bit of trouble processing. Are you supposed to be in this cell?"

"I mean, Scoria put us in here, so…" The dragonet shrugged. "You can come down if you want, I don't care."

Peril hopped down, keeping her distance from the strange looking dragonets but examining them as closely as she could nonetheless. So they're her backup plan? How's that gonna work? "Why's she keeping you two in here? Surely you're not that dangerous."

The dragonet frowned and cocked her head. "Hmm. Okay, can you hold still for a sec? I want to show you something."

Unsure, Peril obliged, and she held still while the dragonet advanced until she was only a few feet away. Alarmed, Peril held out a claw warningly. "Don't get any closer, kay? I'm not exactly-hey!" she yipped, as the dragonet darted in towards her. She threw herself to the side with a grunt, but the pressure of a claw on her side was unmistakable, and she shrank back, wincing. Weirdly, though, she heard no screams, only an excited gasp, and her scales felt a bit chilly in that spot.

She pried her eyes open to see the dragonet quite unburnt, but staring with wonderment at her left claw, which was suddenly very red indeed, glowing like a hot coal. "Woah… you're a firescales!" the dragonet shouted, and in the corner her sister perked up. "That's so cool! I thought Flare was the only one!"

"Wait, who's Flare? Why can you touch me!?" Peril shouted, confused.

The other dragonet raised her head, revealing striking blue eyes the same shade as Peril's. "Mmmh?" she murmured, taking in the two of them. "Flint, what are you doing?"

"Oh, sorry, I was so excited I forgot to tell you our names." The dragonet giggled, embarrassed. "Peril, this is Flare, my sister. Flare, this is Peril, another firescales. And uh, I'm Flint. I've got… the opposite of firescales. Ice-scales?"

"I think we settled on smotherscales." Flare yawned, picking herself up from the corner. Peril could see that her wings were unbound, unlike Flint's. "Hi, I'm Flare. Did Scoria finally find someone actually competent to guard us?" she asked, examining Peril with a critical eye.

Peril blinked. "Um… I'm actually not really with her. Like, she's bossing me around right now, but only because… it's a long story."

"Cool."

Flint laughed again, though it felt much more forced. "Flare's just kidding around, right? We're free to leave anytime we want."

That certainly wasn't the story Scoria had given her. "Then why are you staying down here? I mean, Flare could just go, not like anyone can stop a firescales. And I speak from experience on that one."

"And leave my sister behind to be part of Scoria's evil plans? Not in a million years." A note of steel snuck through the sleepiness in Flare's voice, just for a moment. She stumbled over to Flint. "Ugh, can you cool me off? I'm all flamey right now and it's messing with my mood."

Nodding, Flint flexed her talons a bit, and cracked her knuckles. "Hey Peril, check this out," she said, and then wrapped her forelegs around Flare. Like ink in a stream, the whiteness seemed to flow out of Flare's scales and into Flint's, creeping down her arms in glowing rivulets that pooled on her chest and spread out until they were both perfectly balanced, looking for all the world like normal SkyWings. "Pretty cool, right? And now Flare can't burn anyone for a few hours."

The concept hit Peril so hard she had to sit down. Woah, they can just… neutralize each other like that? But then, they can lead normal lives as long as they stick together. And I could've too, if not for Scarlet. In contrast to Flare's cooling, she suddenly felt very hot indeed, and her talons began to dig into the rocky floor.

"Uh, sis? I think you broke Peril." Flare joked, elbowing Flint. Flint just stared at her, looking mortified.

Focus, Peril. Your brother is dead, but Clay isn't just yet. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, and a few tears dripped from each. Then, with a sigh, she looked back to them. "Sorry, I… lost my brother a long time ago. We never knew each other."

"Wait, your brother? But firescales are identical twins." Flare pointed out.

"Stars, you're smarter than I expected. Yeah, I was born with male anatomy but I'm way more comfortable living as a girl. I'm, er, transgender." She smiled, trying to disguise her terror.

"Oh, that makes sense." Flint said, finally recovering from her daze.

"Anyway, none of that's why I'm here. At least, not directly. Do you know why Scoria's keeping you here?"

"She's not keeping us, we're here for our own protection! Ruby wants us dead!" protested Flint, flapping her wings angrily.

Cradling her head in one talon, Flare sighed. "Come on, Flint. Even you can feel the clips on your wings. Mom doesn't want us leaving, and she's willing to use us against each other to do it." Flint turned her nose up at her argument, but Peril couldn't keep focused on her with the question burning in her mind.

"Wait, Scoria is-"

"Our mother? Unfortunately. I always liked Dad more. He didn't lock us up, or tell me how good at murder I'd be when I grew up," replied Flare, with a shiver.

You think you had it bad? Try being raised by Queen Scarlet. Still, that sort of explains where she found these two. What a piece of work, though. "And who's your dad?"

"Scorch, obviously. He's the only dragon Scoria ever made an egg with."

Peril huffed. How was she supposed to know that? "She's got a HiveWing boyfriend now, I think."

"I... don't like that," Flare replied haltingly.

"Join the club. Does Scorch know you're down here?" I hope not. He seemed like a stand-up guy, if a bit irritating.

"Scorch is too close to Ruby, because of his job as a royal scribe. He can't be trusted to know where we are." Flint said, as if repeating a rehearsed speech. Flare rolled her eyes.

Okay, I think I'm starting to put it together. Peril plopped her rear down on the floor, trying to think clearly. So Scoria's keeping these two without their father or Ruby's knowledge, and they're her backup plan. Given what she said about me, it's clear that she likes firescales a lot… and what could be a more powerful message than a mere dragonet killing the queen? Flare could do it, despite her complaints, and Scoria could make her.

"Flint, Flare, I think I can get you two out of here," she lied. "But I still need some time to figure things out, and I have my own loved one to keep safe from Scoria's tricks." They nodded. "I… Flare, I'm so sorry." Why were her eyes wet?

"For what?"

For you being exactly where I was, eight years ago. For the dragon you might just end up being. For… me. "I'm sorry that your mother is so unrepentantly awful, to keep you here. I know how it feels to be raised for killing."

Flare stared up at her, and Peril realized just how much bigger she was than the tiny firescales. "Uh, okay?"

Peril stretched out a wing to envelop Flare, but stopped. You barely just met her, you sentimental weirdo. Instead, she just patted Flare on the back and held back her tears. It felt… surprisingly warm. Was this what normal dragons felt when they touched each other? Someone else rubbed up against her leg and she tensed, before realizing it was Flint.

"Don't worry, I'm sure it'll be okay," said the smotherscales, nuzzling Peril's leg.

She frowned but didn't pull away. "You have no idea what I'm upset about."

Flint looked up. "You're upset because you think we're trapped here like Scarlet used to keep you trapped. But, we're not trapped, so it's all okay!"

Flare growled at her. "Stop saying that. You're stuck down here and there's-there's nothing I can do about it!" It was the dragonet's turn to be on the verge of tears.

We're just a bunch of basket-cases, aren't we? Peril wondered. "You'll be out of there by tomorrow, one way or another," she assured, and reached down to wrap Flare in her wings. The dragonet's sobs abated, but she still wriggled a bit before snuggling down into the leathery embrace. They stayed like that for a few minutes, trying to take some reassurance from each other like Flint took the fire from their scales.

At last, Peril let up. Flare grumbled a little as Peril put her down. "Sorry, but I really do need to go if I want to make good on my promise."

"Alright. See you… see you tomorrow!" Flare replied, cautiously optimistic.

"Yeah, and then we can all go to the coronation!" Flint added, and Peril's heart dropped a few centimeters.

Trying to hide her disappointment, she leapt up to the side of the pit and scrambled over the edge. "Bye for now," she said, and took off. There were no more guards than there had been coming in, luckily, so she had some time to think.

Well, that was kind of a bust. Flint and Flare are lovely, but two dragonets are not going to solve the current problem. Urgh, I wish this whole "adventure" thing required less thinking. She huffed, rubbing her nose and trying not to run into the same rocks as before. Okay, focus. What have I learned. Well, Scoria's backup plan is unlikely to succeed, but it might end up with Flint or Flare getting… hurt. And she's not going to listen to reason, if she'd lock her own kids up. Neither is Anopheles, since he knows about this already. That said, though...

A flicker of torchlight appeared in the hallway ahead, and she ducked into a nearby crevice. The sentry passed by without seeing a thing, and she took a moment to catch her breath before going on. Scorch may just be willing to listen. If Scoria didn't tell him about this, I doubt he'd approve now. And maybe he could… well, he's no good in a fight, but he is Scoria's personal assistant. A bit of deception on his part and Clay could walk free-along with Flint and Flare. Hey, that was easier than I expected!

Her train of thought was interrupted again as she got to the lift. It was lowered now, and climbing up the framework and into the tunnel above took all of her concentration. At least there was no light shining down from above-the sentry must've been working alone. There's just one small problem, she thought, swinging from one clawhold to another. I have about ten hours to find Scorch, convince him I'm telling the truth, and get him to release Clay.

When she reached the top of the shaft, some of the MudWings standing around the capstan looked over. Luckily, apart from the lantern on the capstan there was no light to speak of, so they didn't recognize her. She took off quickly, winging back towards the estate and hoping that dawn was still a ways off. There was still nobody paying attention to the side of the ridge where her room's window came out, and she managed to slip in with a minimum of fuss. The only noise was when she slipped on the windowsill, and fell down into her room. Stumbling to her feet, she winced at the sound.

"Princess? What's going on in there?" Hallux asked sleepily.

"Just, uh, knocked over a chair. You know how it is."

That excuse apparently wasn't convincing enough, judging by the rustling at the door. She managed to get the window-cover closed just in time, and peeked out from behind the screen to see Hallux walk in. She took in the room, eyes lingering on the empty bed, then looked back at Peril. "Why are you still up at this hour, anyway?"

Peril tensed. She couldn't be found out now, or somebody was losing a toe. "I, uh-insomnia! I'm just stressed, y'know? Big day tomorrow," she replied.

"I'll drink to that. Still, you better get your beauty sleep, if you want to take down Ruby." Hallux retreated back through the door, and Peril let out a breath.

Once she was sure Hallux was back at her post, Peril returned to her bed, laying down on it but not yet curling up to sleep. She had yet more thinking to do. Decision time. I could try and find Scorch right now, or wait until morning. The more time I have to convince him, the better, but it also increases the risk of being found out. She yawned involuntarily, and found her eyelids beginning to droop. Okay, sleep is pretty appealing. Hopefully I don't have any more nightmares… and I wake up early enough to execute this scheme. That was a bit of a worry, but it wasn't enough to stop her from curling up on the molded stone and draping a wing over herself to act as a blanket. Sleep took her in a matter of moments after that.

Blinking herself awake, Peril had a moment of panic until she checked the window and saw that the light shining in was still the dull orange of sunrise. She bolted out of bed, and made for the door. There wasn't even time to be surprised that it was unlocked as she burst through. Luckily, nobody was waiting on the other side. After a moment, Hallux looked up from a nearby bench where she'd been asleep. "Mornin'," she mumbled.

"Yeah, it is. Hey, do you know where Scorch's room is? I, uh, want to apologize for burning him." she asked. Trusting Clay's captor was probably a bad idea, but they were ostensibly on the same side now.

"No. Why would I know that?" she replied, climbing down from her bench and grumbling.

"Because you work here?" Peril replied, puffing smoke from her nostrils.

"Doesn't mean I have to be your personal tour guide."

Oh, so she does know where he is and just won't tell me because she's an asshole. I see. "Actually, it does. I'm the princess; what would Scoria say if she found out that I was wandering about unguarded?" Peril stepped forward a bit, making to leave.

Before she got more than a few feet, Hallux cut her off. A shortsword slipped out of her sheath with a chilling hiss. "That's not gonna happen because I'm not letting you go."

"Who said anything about letting me?" Peril asked, poking the tip of the sword with her claw. It took only a moment to heat to a reddish glow, allowing her to push her claw deeper into the steel until there was a V-shaped gash going halfway down the blade. At last, she pulled her claw free and smirked at Hallux.

Hallux gulped and silently sheathed the ruined blade. "...fine. I'll take you there. But Scoria's gonna hear about this."

"I look forward to it." she said, and let Hallux take the lead.

In contrast to the upper areas of the estate, the infirmary was pretty spartan. To hear Hallux tell it, they mostly served MudWing workers from the mines below, which explained the lack of decoration. For the most part, there were just rows of beds, a few of which had wooden dividers between them for privacy. A few MudWings tended to their brethren, but as she and Hallux entered none of them bothered to ask their business.

"Scorch is down at the end. Go say sorry or whatever." Hallux said, waving her along.

Well, at least she's letting me speak to him alone. Peril thought, as she moved down the rows. The nurses pulled back between the beds as she passed, cautious, and she saw a few patients look up. Most of them were covered in enough drapes that she couldn't see their wounds, but a few had burns or open gashes on their faces. It was grisly, but she was used to gore at this point. The flickers of glowing orange inside the wounds confused her for a moment, until she realised that it must've been chasmite dust, still burning hours or days after they'd been injured. That was enough to make her wince.

Scorch was indeed at the end of the room, and while there was no nurse tending to him he looked pretty healthy. The thick layer of gauze on his neck was the only sign of his grievous wound that was visible above his blanket. "Oh, uh, hi Peril," he stammered as she walked up. He didn't seem mad, to her surprise, mostly just confused.

"... hello, Scorch," she replied, scratching her neck with a wing. "Sorry about…"

"Burning me? It's not your fault, really. I got in your way." His bandages tightened as he tried to shrug, and he winced. There was a small cup of some sort of medicine on a table next to his bed, and he took a little sip before relaxing.

Ok, this guy's definitely crazy. Then again, he never locked up any of his own dragonets. "Well, I hope you feel better soon. There was something else I wanted to talk about, though."

"Yeah?"

"I, um, found out about your kids," she said, trying to find a tactful way to lead in to her point. "Where they are, specifically."

He suddenly straightened, and though he grimaced with pain the expression on his face was focused. "What!?" he asked, and one of the nurses glanced over. That was enough to make him quiet down a bit. "You know where Ruby's keeping them? How'd you find out?"

"Well, it's not exactly… hang on, where do you think they are right now?"

"Wh-Didn't Scoria tell you?" Peril shook her head. "Guess she had her reasons. I'll tell you, though: they're…" he choked up for a moment, claws digging into the bedding. "They were staying with Scoria when Queen Ruby's guard arrived and threw them in the dungeons, because she doesn't believe firescales should walk free. Says you're too dangerous… oh shit, I shouldn't have told you they were firescales."

"Nah, I knew that. Explains why you're so fond of me though."

Another few drops of medicine vanished down his throat before he replied. "Oh no, I was a big fan of you even before that. You, uh, helped remind me that it's not size that matters. It might be hard to believe but I got bullied a lot for my size when I was a kid." Frowning, he gestured down at himself, and Peril resisted the urge to tease him.

"Ah… well, that's nice to know. As far as your kids, though… well, Scoria may have been a little selective with what she told you. Actually, she just straight up lied to convince you to help her." He tensed, and she raised a claw in warning. "Shh! Don't freak out or I can't help you get to them."

Sucking in a breath through his nose, he took a larger gulp of medicine. "Fine. What really happened? And for that matter, why should I believe you?"

"Your dragonets are named Flint and Flare. Flint has grayish-red scales and is perpetually upbeat; Flare is orangey-pink and a real wet blanket, if wet blankets could set things on fire by touching them. That enough evidence that I've met them?"

At that moment, his eyes were wider than most of his scales. "Yeah, that'll… that'll do. Where are they? What-what did Scoria do?" He leaned forward as if to grab her, but managed to restrain himself.

"Well, they are in a prison. Just not Ruby's prison." She paused, frowning. How do I avoid just throwing this news in his lap like a burning dragonflame cactus?

"Where. Are. They?" he asked, and for the first time she saw genuine anger in his eyes.

"Scoria's keeping them in Shaft O451. The, uh, prison one."

Peril was forced to nearly throw herself backwards as Scorch rolled out of the bed, landing on all fours with a grunt of pain but quickly straightening. "Out of my way. I'm going to get my kids back," he growled.

"Woah, woah. Let's not be overly hasty."

"Hasty!? I haven't seen my kids in three months! I wasn't even sure if they were alive! I'm going to that mine right this instant." He took a step forward, stumbled, and nearly fell.

"You're in no condition to go breaking anyone out of prison," she said, resisting the urge to prop him up. Instead she settled for just handing him the cup of medicine, which he finished in a single gulp. "Just hang on a minute. I've got a plan…"

Author's Note: Sorry for the slight lateness of this chapter; I got wrapped up in RP and publishing is the most tedious part of this whole "writing" business. Two chapters left in this arc, if my estimates are correct, so look forward to first part of our exciting finale next week!