Chapter 10
"Augh! The RainWing lying on the ground snapped awake. Sunrise squinted in the fading light at the sand around her and suddenly her memories came flooding back. Three moons I'm an idiot! Sunrise thought to herself and scrunched up her snout to morph her visage into a burly SandWing. How could I be so stupid? She scrabbled for a grip on the sand and tried to pull herself to her talons. Wing beats sounded above and a group of SandWings landed besides her. Sunrise mustered an arrogant yet untrusting expression and covered the unconscious Shadow with her wing. "Whadda ya want?" She growled. "I like sand and um...cacti!" She slapped a claw to her forehead and shook some sand off her shoulders. Idiot. She thought to herself and
growled softly flicking her tail barb. The SandWings exchanged glances and fastidiously moved closer, their spears poised towards her. "What is Blaze's favorite tapestry?" The smaller SandWing asked, beetle black eyes narrowed. Sunrise's head pounded, and she wildly racked her brains for an answer. I lost my head before, but I can't let that happen again. What in Phyrria will I do? "We haven't got all day," the larger one hissed stomping closer. Sunrise curled her lip and opened her mouth to speak hoping to make up for her past mistakes. "I am not a high enough ranked solider to visit Blaze's stronghold. I could care less what happens to the blathering so called "queen". Down with Blaze! Up with BURN!" She roared her scales rippling and expanding. "Aw rhino dung." The large SandWing said looking up at her in fear. Sunrise flared her and wings in anger. "Leave SandWing traitors!" She hissed and snarled at them. A flicker of movement caught Sunrise's eye as she saw Shadow darting to bite a SandWing's claw. "Shadow!" She roared loudly and reached a claw down to help but she was too late. In a heart splitting flash, the little bunny was thrown into the sand, blood reddening the sand around her dear Shadow.
"NO! I HAVE LOST TOO MANY TO LOSE YOU TOO!" Sunrise's pupils dilated, and she roared a deafening screech of pain. Turning to the two SandWings she snatched the smaller one and held the idiot in her claw. With her other claw she brought her talons onto the larger SandWing, a sickening crunch resounded and the SandWing crumpled. "Now...you little missy!" Sunrise turned to the small SandWing who had tried to escape her grasp by stabbing her claw but failed. "You've made a big mistake. Now you will pay." She tightened her claw around the SandWing who screeched loudly, trembling with pain. Sunrise then proceeded to drop the SandWing who weakly flapped her wings to try to escape. Sunrise gently ran her claws over the SandWing making cuts along the side of her. Blood sprayed along the sand and she kept tracing little patterns until the Sand Wing finally went still. A sharp piercing sound rang in her ears as she shrunk down to her normal size and shape. "Shadow?" She leaped over to his little body ignoring the bodies of the SandWings and touched a claw to the irresistibly soft fur. "No... Shadow!" Her claw trembled over the limp body. A single tear splashed down onto the little rabbit's barely warm carcass. "I've lost everything. And I can't lose you too. I'll take you somewhere Shadow. I'll save you." Her breathing was ragged as she scooped up the rabbit in the still night. All my fault. All my fault all my fault. Sunrise repeated the mantra in her head, worry coursing through every bone in her body. She shot through the air heading deeper into the desert.
