... There is one downside to having one of those fancy computer mice, and that being that it has a "Back" Button on it that is so easily misclicked, which can get rid of an hour and a half's worth of writing without any way of recovering, and that just ruins the rest of the day of writing, since you have to write it all out again. Sorry all for the late upload, as before, I misclicked and lost nearly 3 pages worth of writing on Saturday, so that took quite a while to get back to where it is now. Shorter chapter, but I like to see it as setting up the scene, and it's got a bit of action in it this time. I will try to do better for this weekend, as I've now gone from writing on the website directly to writing on word. it's a little annoying, as word doesn't give you a count for how many words you have in the story, but it's doable. But, my rambling aside, I hope you all enjoy this next chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Wings of Fire.

"Normal speech"

"Thoughts."

Moon winced at the look of not anger or sorrow, but disappointment on Wither's face. "... I was worried about you and the others. We... We couldn't just do nothing as you all might have been tortured... or worse. I... I couldn't just do nothing when I could help."

Wither sighed, rubbing his temples. "... Moon, your mother is probably going to kill both of us if she finds out, not to mention what the other Nightwing might do if you're caught. It was bad enough knowing that Kinkajou is here but seeing you here... you need to find her and leave. It's too dangerous for the both of you."

Moon swallowed, before steeling herself. "... And it isn't for you?"

Wither frowned. "Moon, this isn't about me-"

"Yes, it is!" Wither blinked in surprise as Moon snapped at him, Moonwatcher glaring up at him. "You talk as if your safety isn't important, but it is! You promised mom to protect me, but who's protecting you!? You... You gave me something I never had before. Friends and a chance to... live without being afraid of every aspect of my life! I Have friends now, which I never thought I would ever have. And now, when you're in trouble, you want me to just go away? Why is it wrong for me to want to do something!?"

Wither frowned. "I'm not saying that or berating you. It is dangerous here."

She snapped back. "And it's dangerous for you too! Is it wrong for me to care!?"

Wither froze, his eyes widening as everything changed for a split second. Instead of a laboratory, it was now a lush field of green grass and white flowers, the sun shining high above him. In Moon's place was Celeste, every bit as beautiful as he remembered, looking to him with a smile as the words echoed to him. "... Is it wrong for me to care?"

The next instant, she was gone, Wither now back in the present as he took deep breaths to calm himself down, fighting the tears that threatened to flow from the reminder. "...No... It's not wrong."

Moonwatcher watched as Wither slumped onto the ground, the older dragon sighing heavily. "... I just don't want you to get hurt. I can handle myself, but I... I won't always be there to protect you, Moon. I am only one dragon, no matter how mystical or powerful I seem... There still only so much I can do. I can't be everywhere at once. I can't magically know when you're in danger. And I... I'm still trying to figure out how to deal with the current situation."

Moonwatcher frowned, getting only a slip through Wither's thoughts. "... False prophecy..."

Moon looked into his eyes. "... This has to do with Fatespeaker and the other dragonets, doesn't it?"

Wither looked to her, before nodding. "Yes... I don't want to break the faith that the others have, but... There is a dark conspiracy unfolding... The prophecy is..."

Moon stared at the ground as she connected the last word. "... It's fake, isn't it?... A lie..."

Wither sighed. "... Yes... Morrowseer was never a prophet. Sunny. Clay. Starflight. Tsunami and Glory... They were ripped away from their homes for a lie..."

Moon trembled, sorrow and anger morphing on her face. "... It's not fair... How could they do this?"

Wither placed a talon on her shoulder, prompting her to meet his eyes. "Desperation brings a dragon's true nature to the surface, for better or for worse. You've seen the island, what it's like to just breathe here, and the dangers it holds outside these walls. These dragons are desperate for some... reprieve from this living nightmare of a kingdom... and that desperation can drive even the best of dragons to do horrible acts, especially when they're not the only ones involved."

Moon tilted her head in confusion as Wither gave her a grim look. "The Nightwings themselves are suffering, yes, but think of how your mother felt. She wished so hard for you to not have to suffer like these Nightwings do that she took you to the Rainforest in secret. I can't imagine any of the other Nightwings here not wanting to do the same. To take their beloved dragonets away from this place of constant suffering and hardship. But in that desperation, they latched onto the only option that gave them hope... The false prophecy. I know it may sound evil, but... There are always two sides of a story, and once you see both, it is difficult to tell which side is good or evil. The important thing is to understand that... no dragon is perfect. We all make mistakes... I have made more mistakes than any living dragon or dragonet alive. I do not channel my hatred to the Nightwings who live here, as they are just... holding onto hope. The only ones to blame here are those who orchestrated this."

Moon looked away from him, taking a deep breath. "... Morrowseer?"

Wither nodded. "I'm sure the queen had a hand in this as well, but yes, him especially. That's why I need to play this out carefully... It's why I'm working on things slowly, by earning trust in some of the Nightwings here."

Moonwatcher tilted her head in confusion, before Wither smiled, letting his mind open so she could read his thoughts. Her eyes widened in surprise, gasping lightly. "You're... Trying to show them another way. That the prophecy isn't their only choice!"

He nodded, smirking. "If we can show those who are simply standing on the sidelines that they can leave this place without needing to go to war or needing to fulfill this prophecy, then I have no doubt that more than half the Nightwings here will abandon that plan... And that is what I need you to do for me, Moon."

He held her shoulders, looking into her eyes. "I need you to get back to Glory and to tell her to let any Nightwings who come in peace through the tunnel. I'm going to try and convince as many Nightwings as I can to leave before things here get worse, and I want them to be treated fairly. And, Tell her to prepare a section of land in the Rainforest to become a residential area for the Nightwings who do come through. That any who come in peace are allowed to create a new home there until we find a better spot for them."

Moonwatcher started at him incredulously. "... Even after everything that's happened... You're going to try and save them?"

Wither nodded. "... I failed to save them once before... before Arrogance and pride consumed them... I want to rectify that mistake."

Moon smiled. "... When they changed their name from Starwings to Nightwings?"

Wither nodded, before freezing as her words registered, staring at her. "... How did you...?"

Moon grinned sheepishly. "... Glory, Sunny and I found your book..."

Wither sighed. "... You six are going to be the death of me with how much trouble you all get into... Seven if you count Kinkajou..."

It was Moon's turn to blink in surprise. "You saw Kinkajou? I've been wondering where she ran off to."

Wither rolled his eyes. "Well, I told her to go back to the Rainforest, but she claimed to forget the way back and I doubt she listened."

Moon sighed. "... Can it really get worse than it already is?"

Wither looked down at her sadly, before placing a talon on the ground. "Close your eyes and try to focus on your sense of touch. You'll see what I mean."

Moon looked at him skeptically, but nodded, closing her eyes as she tried to feel anything. She could feel the heat of the air, the smoke polluting it and the rough texture of the ground. All of it was assaulting her senses now that she was focusing on them. She stayed still for a few seconds, about ready to give up when she realized it. The rough rock slowly scraped against her scales, yet she wasn't moving. Her eyes snapped up, looking at Wither in shock as he nodded.

"The entire Island has been vibrating. I noticed it not too long after I got here... The island has a few weeks if we're lucky. If not... could be a few days. Then... This entire island, and every dragon still on it, will be consumed by molten rock and fire."

Kinkajou snuck through the halls of the Palace, more cautiously now that she had that scare with Viper. She made sure to peek around each corner before crossing, not rushing anymore since she didn't want a scorpion tail jabbed into her face. She was about to go to the tunnel on the left when she heard voices coming from the opposite direction.

She thought about exploring more, but her inner mischievous side won as per usual, smirking to herself. "And Bromeliad says I'm bad at this along with venom shooting. I'll show her. Stealth mode activated."

She crept up towards the voices that she could catch, being fairly far off but without the clattering of talons, she could faintly hear two voices arguing. She turned a corner, expecting a tunnel, but was greeted by a small room. A map of some sort that she couldn't recognize hung on the back wall, with many markers and what Kinkajou presumes were words on it. She shook her head. "Note to self, ask the others to teach me to read."

She could hear the voices coming from further inside, but the room was so small. She looked around, noting the decorations of helmets and the weirdly shaped spears that the guards always carried, before following her ears, leading her to the map. She peeled back the side, finding another tunnel hidden behind it, to her surprise.

She slowly crawled forward, starting to make out the voices better as she got closer to a light at the end. It seemed to be arguing, getting close enough to understand what was being said. "Blister is demanding to know our progress with capturing the Stone scaled dragon, and the alternate dragonets, but neither are running smoothly. We had to separate those Dragonets a dozen times in the last three days alone from killing each other. And the stone dragon…"

Kinkajou inched closer, until she could finally see inside the room. There were two dragons, a large and scary male, and a female who looked pretty with a necklace of shiny gems around her neck. The room was littered with weird trinkets, gold and other things that might be considered as treasure, though three spots on the walls of the circular room were cleared. At the center was a giant pot like thing Kinkajou had never seen before, filled to the brim with the molten blood of the mountain, bubbling and hissing with heat.

The male dragon spoke next, growling. "Will be subdued in due time. We just need to break him until he gives in to our ways."

The female sighed, pacing around the large pot. "Morrowseer… You saw what happened with Vengeance. That was no meager feat of strength, and he did it by accident. Killing Vengeance quickly and brutally… That is strength that our tribe cannot afford to antagonize right now, not with the eruption close at hand. We just… don't have enough time."

Morrowseer growled. In defiance. "It will work, Greatness. We just need an acceptable dragonet to kill… Force his hand. Once he realizes we can hurt him, he will break."

Greatness sighed again, settling. "… What if he goes on a rampage? He could easily overpower our guards, with both his size, his strength, and… with how much weaker the guards are getting… We're dying, Morrowseer… and… We can't afford to have a monster fighting us."

It looked like more yelling was about to start when something started rising out of the pot. Kinkajou had to clamp her talons over her snout to stop the startled exclamation as a large black dragon rose into view, the molten Lava dripping off her black scales.

The largest dragon hacked a cough, breathing slowly in ragged sounding gasps. "Time… We need time… Break the stone dragon… We must move upon… the rain forest soon…"

Morrowseer bowed to the large dragon. "Worry not, Queen Battlewinner. We shall have our army once the arrogant dragon is dealt with. He will bend to our will, one way or another."

Kinkajou was about to back up through the tunnel when Morrowseer started moving towards her, or rather, the tunnel leading out. Her eyes darted from side to side, before diving, just barely missing contact as she ended up fully in the room, Morrowseer walking past and out.

Greatness sighed, looking to Battlewinner. "Mother… There is discourse amongst the tribe… Wither's display of power has some of the council having doubts on this modification… And with the volcano so close to erupting… How will we be able to end the war and get Blister's aid in assaulting the Rainwings?"

Battlewinner scoffed, hacking another cough, Kinkajou feeling cold air coming from the queen's breath. "We will move… Blister's aid is needed, but if so… We move under cover of darkness… Hidden and waiting… Until we strike…"

She sniffed at the air, the queen's eyes widening as she scanned the room, her eyes searching every inch of the room. "… Unfamiliar scent… Intruder here…"

Wither gave a sad smile to Moon. "… That's why I need you to go and warn Glory ahead of time. If a slew of Dragons come pouring out of the tunnel into the rainforest, she might mistake it as an act of war. And… More dragons dying is the last thing we need."

Moon looked down, before sighing. "I'm not sure how easy it will be to slip past the guards this time. We were lucky that the guards at the tunnel were asleep one our way in, but I doubt it will happen a second time. I… Morrowseer's seen me, though he didn't see my scales…"

She shifted uncomfortably, Wither tilting his head. "Is something wrong Moonwatcher?"

Moon looked to the side, debating on what to say. "… It's nothing. Just… worried about if Kinkajou might run into him."

Wither rolled his eyes. "Yeah, He is a bit of a… hm… what would be a good way to describe him?" He tapped his chin, before smirking. "… Toad sucking duck face with branches for horns?"

Moon couldn't stop herself from giggling, Wither's smirk turning into a smile. "… Just be safe, Moon… I would blame myself if you got hurt here."

Moon nodded after smothering her giggles, before returning the smile. "I will."

Kinkajou barely managed to stop herself from squeaking as Greatness looked around. "But… Mother, there's no one here."

Battlewinner growled lightly. "I can smell… Unseen… Hidden… She swiveled her head back and forth, sniffing deeply, before locking onto where Kinkajou was hiding. "… show yourself… Little one…"

Kinkajou felt nervous, being in a room with two dragons who could kill her, but… she put on her most determined face, before starting to shift out of her camouflage. Greatness gasped in surprise at the vibrantly pink and yellow dragon, flecks of red running through her scales. "A-A rainwing dragonet!?"

Kinkajou growled in indignation. "The name's Kinkajou, Frog face."

Greatness blinked in surprise, starting to look offended. "F-frog face!?"

A raspy laugh came from Battlewinner, followed by a harsh cough. "Feisty little Rainwing… How amusing."

Kinkajou growled. "I'm not letting you invade my home. My tribe's done nothing to yours. Why are you so dead set on hurting us!? Why kidnap us!?"

Battlewinner gave an amused look to Kinkajou. "A rainwing with a spine… Interesting… Alright…" She nodded to Greatness. "Tell her." Sinking back into the lava so only her head poked out.

Greatness looked between her mother and Kinkajou, incredulous and unbelieving, before resigning to following her mother's order. "… This island is set to erupt sometime within the next four months. If we don't find a new place for our tribe, they will all die… The rainwings were simply the tribe that would give the least resistance. They are known for how lazy they are, but we needed to be sure, so we collected a some and did experiments to see what strengths the tribe had to combat it… Claiming the Rainforest is our only chance for survival."

Kinkajou stared at her for a long moment, thinking it over. "… That plan is… so… Stupid!"

Even Battlewinner recoiled a little from the outburst from kinkajou, the young Rainwing glaring at both Nightwings. "What makes you think we would fight you if you had just explained it! The Rainforest is huge! More than we could ever need! I'm sure queen… ah, right. She wasn't queen until yesterday… Well, still… It's stupid that your first thought it to go to war with us! We don't want war! I was just minding my own freaking business and then whacked in the head! I mean… did you even try any other plan!?"

Greatness looked at the Rainwing in shock but was stopped as Battlewinner growled loudly. "Silence, whelp… We must… keep our pride."

Kinkajou stamped her talon on the ground. "Isn't that the reason you're in the mess anyway!?"

Battlewinner growled louder, her face contorting with rage. "Seize her!"

Kinkajou smirked at the larger Nightwing, blowing a raspberry at her. "Just try to catch me, beaver breath!" She darted to the exit, her scales fading into transparency as she ran, Battlewinner roaring in anger, before hacking and coughing harshly, wincing in pain as Greatness stopped her mother from exiting the cauldron of lava.

Greatness shook her head. "Calm yourself, mother. If you exit the cauldron… We will be without a queen."

Battlewinner rasped a breath, the air leaving her lungs as cold as ice. "… The enemy knows… We must act soon."

Greatness looked towards the tunnel, keeping her face as neutral as she could to not let her mother catch on that the young Rainwing's words had hit hard upon her. "… She's right… The whole situation is our own fault… our pride has become our downfall. Mother… please, listen to reason soon… At this rate, our tribe will die before the prophecy is fulfilled, and all our plans, if we do survive, will make us the most hated tribe in all of Pyrrhia."

Viper's perked up as she heard a distant roar echo through the halls of the Nightwing palace. "Well, someone's angry. Wish I could see their face."

Fame groaned lightly in annoyance. "Would you just shut up, Viper? You dragged me out here in the first place. Not in the mood to listen to your narration of the blatantly obvious."

Viper growled, her tail poising to strike. "Watch it, Flame. I might accidentally sting you."

Flame was about to retort when they walked out into an open room with spears and armor lining the walls, several Nightwing guards practicing formations and techniques with the spears. Viper grinned. "Finally, some progress… What you say we go challenge them?"

Flame sighed. "Go yourself. I'm not in the mood."

Viper shrugged. "Suit yourself."

She walked towards the group that was practicing, the one that seemed in charge looking to them with a frown. "Cease! We will resume in five minutes." The training guards all groaned as they dropped their spears, the metal clattering to the ground, moving to any corner of the room to lie down and rest as the instructor approached Viper and Flame. "What are you both doing here? Morrowseer had very simple orders."

Viper scoffed. "Well, I wanted to see how well Nightwings can fight. Must be terrible if they go down that easily."

The captain growled. "They've been doing that drill for the last hour, brat. You wouldn't last ten minutes."

Viper growled angrily, but Flame took a closer look at the resting guards, realizing what he meant. The scales on their talons looked like they had been rubbed raw, scratched and chipped. Sweat dripped down their bodies and snouts as they lay panting on the ground, their frames shuddering from exhaustion. "… Viper, I think he knows what he's talking about…"

Viper hissed. "Well, I think the Nightwings are just a bunch of weaklings! Can't even hold a spear for an hour!"

The instructor glared at Viper, before picking up one of the fallen spears, checking for any damage from them being dropped. "Well, I have no time to deal with the foolish and naïve observations of a dragonet who has no idea what they're talking about. Go back to your cave before Morrowseer gets angry with you."

Viper trembled with rage with each insult hurled at her, before growling out. "Fight me!"

The instructor stopped, looking at viper with a quizzical look… before giving out a bellowing laugh. "Sorry, Sandwing, but I'm not in the habit of bullying dragonets." He turned to collect the fallen spears, disregarding the two dragonets.

Viper gritted her teeth in anger, before roaring as she lunged at the older Nightwing. Her Barbed tail poised to strike into the Nightwing's back. The Nightwing turned, glaring at the charging dragonet. "… Foolish."

He flipped up the spear he was holding, using one of the two prongs on the spear to swing and catch into the groove just beneath the barb of Viper's tail, the curved metal hooking onto her scales. Using it, the larger Nightwing pulled to the side, causing her tail to fly off target, before slamming his spearhead into the ground with the tail still trapped, anchoring her to the ground. She roared in pain as she tried to claw and bite at him, but he quickly kicked another spear that was on the ground forward into his waiting talon, He using the spear to stop her fangs, tears coming from Viper's eyes as her teeth met metal. Her claws were swiping at air, due to the older dragon holding her at length with the spear, before slamming his helmeted head into her uncovered skull.

Her entire world shook, backing up as her vision slowly came back into focus, but before she could regain her composure, the Nightwing lunged, using the blunt end of the spear to slam into her stomach, causing her to wheeze from the air being forcefully expelled from her lungs. She had no time to recover as she was shoved, rolling onto her back as she tried desperately to regain some control, but froze as she felt sharp steel against her neck.

Her eyes finally refocused, staring into the cold eyes of the older Nightwing, his spear pressed against her throat. She tried to move her tail, but the spear holding it was too wedged into the ground. She winced as she felt the spear draw her blood, staring up at her opponent.

Flame could barely think before the battle was already over. Less than twenty seconds, and the Nightwing had beaten viper, holding her life in his hands. But it wasn't how quick the fight was that shocked him. He could see something in Viper's eyes. Something he'd never seen in her before. Fear.

The older nightwing glared at Viper, growling. "Pathetic. You call us weakling, yet beating you was as simple as crushing an ant. You are not ready for battle, or war. If that was the best you can do, then it will be far too late for you to fulfil this prophecy that you all are a stand in for."

Viper panted, her body shivering against her will as Flame frowned. "Stand in? What do you mean? We are the dragonets of destiny."

The Nightwing gave a sarcastic laugh, pulling away from Viper, Viper gasping for the breath she didn't know she was holding. "Please. You think arrogant dragonets like you are our first choice? There are other dragonets, but Morrowseer wants dragonets who are more… Moldable. Dragonets who will do what they're told instead of rebelling. But he's a fool if he thinks you five will be good for anything other than for show. I've fought Sandwings before, and that display was by far the most pathetic I've seen. If you fight like that, you'll die in the first five minutes of your first battle... No, make that the first five seconds."

Viper finally was able to breath normally, swallowing as Wither's words replayed in her head. She wanted to be angry. She wanted to scream and rant on how he was wrong… but… "… Teach me."

The Nightwing, who was going back to collecting the spears, stopped and turned towards her. "Excuse me?"

Viper got up, still shaky from the near death experience. "… You're right… I'm not ready… None of us are… But we want to be. I want to be able to fight. I don't want to be weak… I want to be strong, like my mother."

The Nightwing looked at her carefully. Though she was still trembling, he could see, under the inherent anger and newfound fear, a spark of something. He went over, before pulling the spear that was pinning Viper's tail out of the ground, shoving it into her front talons. "… Come back in one hour. If you are late, then I will refuse you. If on time… We'll see how you fare."

Viper grunted as he let go of the spear, the weapon fumbling in her talons as it was heavier than she had expected. "… I-I'll be there."

The Nightwing nodded, looking to flame. "… Will you be joining as well, Skywing?"

Flame shook his head. "Thanks, but no thanks. I think I'm good on not getting my tail handed to me."

Viper hissed. "Shut up, Flame!"

The Nightwing rolled his eyes. "If that's all, get out of here. The last thing I need is Morrowseer whining about me interacting with his 'prized dragonets'."

Viper nodded, holding the spear tightly. "… What do I call you?"

The Nightwing looked back, grinning to show that one of his front teeth were made of gold. "The name's Tyrant."

And another chapter done. Just to do an update on the image, the base drawing has been decided, but the person I have commissioned it to is in the middle of another commission, so not sure how long it will be before Wither's image gets started on. and even then, Still need to do payment and such. The drawing looks good, and I will be turning it into the story's image. There are some other questions in the reviews I've seen, but some of them are ones that will be answered later in the story, and I don't want to spoil it too much. clarify some for Perrythedashwing: Celeste was Wither's mate, who is currently deceased. As far as I know, in the Wings of fire universe, Dragons can live for up to hundreds of years, but due to fighting and wars, the life span of an average dragon is closer to thirty. As for why Wither is so old, that will be in greater detail later in the story.

But, as always, thank you all for being patient with me and for reading this story of mine. I never imagined it would get nearly 15000 views at this point, but I'm glad you all are enjoying this little fantasy of mine. I still love the Wings of fire series and wish that there was more. Thank you all for reading, and I'll hopefully see you all next week.