"Frostfire! Run! Hurry! Go on, get out of here. If you don't - then they'll kill you too!" My mother, Avalanche, yelled, as she stared at me with pleating dark blue eyes. My little sister, Lynx, had been stabbed in the chest multiple times with a spear, her dark blue blood was pooled all around her.
I felt like I was going to be sick as I watched my father, Eagle, get his side and wings slashed to the point where he couldn't escape. My mother's words echoed in my mind, but my body was frozen in place. I screamed for them to stop, to leave my parents alone, but they just laughed and slashed my fathers throat.
When my mother was grabbed, I screamed even louder, tears were cascading down my face and I was forced to watch as they slashed her throat, and then they turned their blood-thirsty gaze on to my trembling form.
I then ran as fast as I could run. I was only four, so I couldn't run very fast or that far. I screamed in terror as the SkyWings caught up with me. One of my wings was slashed and my right front talon was broken. My back left talon was sprained when I tripped on some muddy slopes. I fought them off of me and sprayed them in the face with something black, not the color of frost breath. I was too scared and terrified. I was scared for my life, and I turned tail and ran.
I had branches smack in my face and I tripped over tree roots and rocks. I remembered that my mother always tod me that if I was ever In danger, then I flee as fast as I could to the IceWing Kingdom. That's where I was heading at this very moment. It would take a while to get there, so I'll need to rest and find something to eat.
The only thing that was keeping me alive right now is running on fear and adrenaline. I stopped under the folds of a tall tree. I was panting heavily and everything ached. But my mind was still on high alert, these SkyWings and NightWings killed my family, they won't stop until they find me. I finally took a full recount of what had just happened. My parents and sister are dead, I'm all alone now. I'm a hybrid, an IceWing/SkyWing hybrid.
Tears began running down my face once more as I thought of my parents and younger sister. I would never see my mother's smiling face, nore would I hear her soothing voice when I woke up crying from nightmares. I would never get lessons from my father about how to fly super fast, nore would I be able to show my father that I had just learned to use both Fire and Frost breath. I wouldn't be able to have food fights with my little sister, nore would I be able to teach her to fly like I had promised. I curled up into a tight ball as sobs racked my body. My body hurt, I was scared, tired, hungry, and I just wanted my parents and little sister back. I ended up crying myself to sleep that night.
The sound of singing birds was what woke me from my restless sleep. I groaned and slowly opened my eyes, I went to sit up and instantly, pain flared up in my entire body. I collapsed back down to the forest floor with a cry. I whimpered and my stomach growled, I haven't eaten since yesterday morning. I curled up into a ball and tried to stop the pain. The sudden sound of a twig snapping made me shot upright in a panic, my whole body cried out in protest but I was now on high alert. My eyes went wide as one of the SkyWings entered the clearing that I was in. The last thing that I saw was a knife rushing towards me, then everything went dark.
I awoke to a loud knock outside my room, followed by the ringing of the palace bell.
You're finally awake. You better have a good excuse for missing the first guard inspections.
Oh no. Three moons I slept past the first bell, and given my low ranking, there was a good chance I could be thrown out of the palace guard for missing such an important routine.
Panicking, I tried shuffling my ice spikes into a presentable manner, but no matter how hard I shook my neck, they would not settle in place. The second bell was going to ring soon, and missing the second round of inspections carried an even harsher punishment, so I gave my spikes one more shake, grabbed my spear and ran outside, hastily assuming guard posture.
I heard a pair of footsteps outside the corridor. I assumed Floe was back to visit, but the dragon that stepped in was a massive, muscular soldier who wore six rings, same as me. When he saw my disheveled appearance, he twisted his snout into an ugly sneer.
I tried not to show how nervous I was but judging my disheveled appearence and tail spikes, I failed miserably at it. And the IceWing standing in front of me looked less then pleased.
'Great, that's Leopard, the IceWing that I reported about to Queen Snowdrift.' I thought to myself with a bit of annoyance and destain forming on my face. It quickly disappeared before Leopard could even so much as blink.
"Look who's not following rules now," Leopard mocked. "I read your little 'report' and it was full of flattering statements. Maybe I should write a response about how your spikes aren't in proper position, or how you missed the first bell, or-"
Mink cleared her throat quietly. "That is outside your jurisdiction, I brought you along to observe guard inspections, so I suggest you silence yourself before I revoke your promotion."
Leopard looked like he wanted to say some flavorful words, but he shut up and decided to focus on glaring. Through gritted teeth, he muttered, "Stupid."
"You shall address me as Madame. Now move aside." Mink replied courtly. She flashed her four rings.
"Yes Madame." The insolent worm did as he was told.
"Auster, the council will not wait forever. If you really want that assistant position, hurry to the courtyard. You are dismissed." Mink spoke in the same calm and impassive tone she always used.
I nodded and quickly darted behind her and into the cool morning air outside, escaping the curious stares from Leopard and other guards as I flew over to the courtyard.
Don't be jealous that Mink and Tusk got promoted. I'm sure Bering will choose you to be his assistant. _
'Thanks for the confidence booster, I'm glad that at least someone believes in me. But it's up to the judges, not you, and is that Sealion?"
Indeed, the head of palace operations and second in command behind Queen Snowdrift herself stood under the Tree of Light, inspecting the ranking list. I secretly hoped he was considering moving my name up, but I ducked under an archway before I could see anything he did.
I blew a plume of frost as I landed right outside of the palace. I couldn't afford to be nervous. After all, showing your emotions is what the week ones do, they need to learn that you can't get higher in the ranks by being soft.
I huffed and flicked my tail in irritation, I then raised my gaze and the palace doors opened and one of the Queen's guards, an IceWing named Permafrost led me inside.
"I see that you have arrived on time, Auster." Permafrost said, nodding her head in approval. I nodded and followed her into the palace.
"I also heard about that report that Mink sent to Queen Snowdrift, you might be placed in the 3rd circle at the rate your heading. Keep it up." I nodded, and Permafrost stopped at the entrance to the meeting hall.
As we entered the room, I saw the gazes of the higher ranked IceWings land on me, I payed them no mind, but I did nod my head in greeting towards them.
The council had arranged a series of long tables connected at the ends to make a column on which important dragons sat on both sides, stoic and still, awaiting the arrival of the leader, which I assumed would be Sealion.
I could feel the hostile stares from some of the nobles as I treaded carefully towards the end of the tables, far away from the highest ranked elites. I spotted not one dragon with more than four rings, which only made my six more conspicuous and distasteful.
There was one dragon that was noticeably different though. Near the high ranking end, a familiar dragon wriggled and squirmed around, his neighboring dragons giving him plenty of space to not sit still and act nobly. Again, he had that big dumb grin all over his snout. I could tell that in his no doubt many studies, subtlety was never a priority.
I was seated beside two IceWing dragonet's who were two more of my friends. I nodded to Blizzard and Snowstorm. They nodded in return.
Crystal dishes lined the tables, filled with red currant juice and cured polar bear meat. Compared to the crudely prepared seal meat and moss, this was an incredible feast, but I could not touch it yet. It was a silent rule that no one touched the food until the leader of the conference did so.
My gaze then swept around the room. There was of corse the long white table that we were all sitting at, a chandler made of sapphires hung from the ceiling, the crystals were giving off of bright blue glow that lit up the whole room.
After a few more moments of staring at the rankings list, Sealion finally approached the tables, but he did not take the lead position as expected. Instead, the commander sat beside Silverstream and assumed his usual stoic expression.
If Sealion wasn't the leader, then that meant there was only one dragon that ranked higher.
Without warning, every single dragon at the table stood up and bowed their heads. I did the same but out of the corner of my eyes, I could see a regiment of guards marching in, kitted out in royal armor.
A regal voice drifted over the bowing dragons. "Rise, my subjects. Let this mark the commencement of the second session."
I had only ever heard the Queen's voice from afar during motivational speeches to the whole tribe, but at this close distance, she seemed more powerful than ever. Her voice sounded like the indomitable waves just north of the palace, authoritative and imposing.
As I regained my seat alongside the other members, I got to see the monarch in her full dress glory. Queen Snowfall bore no jewelry on her thin and tall frame except for a sapphire crown signifying her power. She didn't need the adornments though because her perfectly polished scales and stark blue gaze garnered the approval of every IceWing in her presence.
She was the opposite of Frostfire essentially, who wore all the trappings of a queen yet emanated none of the authority. Stream did say that she used to-
If you're going to suck up to Queen Snowdrift, why don't you actually tell her directly? Everyone is waiting for you to raise your glass.
Snapping back to the present, I felt the heated glares of the rest of the assembly concentrated on me. All the nobles had raised their glasses to the Queen's toast, except me.
Embarrassed, I lifted my glass and attempted a weak smile. Despite the annoyed looks on everyone's snout, Queen Snowdrift gave me an affirmative nod before taking a sip of the currant juice. I, and the other dragons followed suit, but I was too nervous to enjoy the rich and tart currant juice slipping down my throat.
Queen Snowdrift set her cup on the table. "Now that we have toasted to our newest member, we can proceed to the task at hand, that being the campaign to capture the western regions of the SkyWing mountains. How is the progress?"
Narwhal stood up to address his sister. "Our expeditions are encountering unforeseen issues the resistance. The new spears are not holding up as promised. The winds are unpredictable and often renders frostbreath useless. We have yet to receive proper explanations from our scientist." He turned his view to Bering, who wilted under his glare.
As Queen Snowdrift took her place at the head of the long table, we all waited patiently for her to begin speaking.
"Hello, everyone, as you all may have heard, one of our IceWing dragonets brought me a report of something very important. I will not disclose any information about what the report contained. But I will tell you that Auster has climbed up into the 3rd circle of the rankings." The Queen announced, as she finished her speech, I could feel all of the gazes on me.
Some of the IceWings nodded their heads in approval while others just frowned and shook their heads. I met the Queen's proud and approving gaze.
Queen Glacier turned her attention to Bering, who immediately stopped his antics. "Bering, I hope you understand that the council expects results soon. The next round of funding will hinge on your ability to deliver a solution in a timely manner." She tapped her talons on the proposal.
The scientist eagerly responded. "Of course Your Highness, I won't let you down. With my assistant by my side, I will have the necessary talent to fix those spears and map out the wind patterns."
The Queen nodded in approval. "Those are bold promises, but I am sure you will rise to meet them. Before the council votes on your proposal, please introduce your assistant. My vote is yes, but perhaps she will inspire the rest of the council's confidence in your plan."
"As you wish Your Majesty." Bering gazed at the end of the table, and his eyes lit up when he found his query. Me. "Auster! Stand please."
Oh no.
Just as with the glass incident, every pair of eyes was focused on me. However this time, I could see curiosity and possibly admiration as I stood up. I threw my wings back into the standard guard position, the only formal stance I knew and immediately, some of the admiration looks turned sour.
Bering was unfazed by my posture and hurried over to my side to show off his prize, no matter how uncultured or lowly I seemed. "Everyone, this is Auster from the 6th circle (why did he have too mention that) who is now my assistant. I am honored to be working with such a talented and intelligent partner. Auster, is there anything you would like to add?"
All I could think about were the dumb slogans from guard training. The guards often spoke to each other in a crude manner, reserving the few phrases of legalese we knew for answering to superiors.
"I too, am… honored to also work with Bering, for he is a very smart dragon."
Real smooth. Remember what Snowdrift wants from you, try saying that you look forward to collaboration and achieving your goals. I hear a lot of that in motivational speeches.
"I look forward to working together on this promising project and with discipline, hard work and self-control, we will accomplish the goals as listed by Your Majesty."
Queen Snowdrift gave a small acknowledgement, replying "Those are very wise words. I look forward to seeing the results of your work. As assistant to Floe, you will receive the same rights, up to and including a promotion to the 3rd circle, effective immediately."
I stood in shock as Sealion took my name plate and swiftly moved it to near the top of the list, just under Floe's name, safely in the 3rd circle, the upper echelon of IceWing society. With that one motion, I now ranked higher than many of the dragons in the council, above even my old commander Mink, and had the rights to live within the palace itself.
"Congratulations, you may remove your circle rings and present them at the jeweler for replacements as you choose. Here's to your success." Queen Glacier raised her glass of currant juice again, and this time, she had a small smile on her snout as she downed the entire contents of the goblet. "Now that we have concluded our introductions, we will now proceed to vote on the proposal. If you are in favor, raise your goblet." The Queen raised hers.
Slowly, dragons around the table also raised their glasses, I even saw Alpine reluctantly lifting hers. Eventually, every dragon at the table held up their glass, trusting in their leader's judgement.
The queen looked at me oddly like I had rabbits sticking out of my ears. "Auster, are you not in favor of your own project?"
You fool, you can vote now, you're part of the council. Raise your glass!
I grabbed my cup and thrusted it in the air, flustered from letting my inexperience show. The ice pads never mentioned the specifics of how to act in company of high society. Probably because the writers were all nobles and assumed that the reader already knew.
The Queen announced the unanimous approval of Bering's proposal and stamped her royal seal upon the scroll, and Bering's snout lit up with the biggest smile I had seen yet. Having accomplished the main goal of the meeting she waved her talons.
The two dragons who had ignored me before suddenly took an interest in me. It seemed like now half the members of the council had jewelry advice to share, or the best way to maintain my rank, and generally wanted to become my new best friend. I had about seven awkward conversations with these nobles before Permafrost came over and shooed them all away.
I just smiled politely and looked down at my talons. I didn't know that Queen Snowdrift would be announcing that to everyone.
After a few moments of awkward silence, one of the IceWings near the head of the table spoke up. His name was Walrus if I remembered correctly. I wasn't very fond of him very much to be honest.
"I also want to say that I think the lower-ranked dragons need more training, and they also need to learn IceWing traditions." Walrus explained to the listing dragons in the room.
"I will see to it that Crystal teaches her students better. They do need to learn the IceWing traditions and history," the Queen replied, with a slight nod of her head.
"That concludes our meeting today. Inner council, follow me to the throne room. The rest of you are free to enjoy this feast." Sweeping her tail majestically, she left the courtyard, followed by Narwhal, Tundra and a couple more dragons.
Once Walrus was finished with his peace, he took his seat and the Queen began to speak again. "Alright this meeting is finished. Oh, and Auster, be sure to head to the jeweler's shop to get your 3rd circle accessories." The Queen said, glancing in my direction, then with that the Queen bowed and left the room, with her daughters and some other dragons following her.
He flashed me a grin and pushed a plate of meat in my direction after the final noble had given up trying to convince me that emeralds were better than sapphires. "Enjoy the feast. There's evidence that you perform better on a full stomach."
"Sounds like you should take your own advice."
Bering held up his talons in mock defense. "I do eat! I just have a fast metabolism. And besides, I have even better food in my lab. I can't wait to show you my lab after you finish stuffing your face with that meat." He handed me a fork.
I had been so busy talking that I hadn't noticed that I was using my talons to shovel food into my maw. Normally, guards ate with their talons as it was the fastest way to eat and given the short breaks, speed outweighed etiquette. Based on the disgusted looks from my neighbors, lowly guard behavior was not held in high regard among council members.
Whatever, I was full anyways. After swigging the rest of my currant juice, I followed Bering out of the snobby courtyard and into the southern wing, where the walls were carved with intricate designs.
I then bowed to the dragons that were still there as Permafrost led me to where I would pick out my third circle Jewelry of my choice. The jeweler's room was situated in the western portion of the palace, alongside the merchant stands and storehouses that kept the supplies necessary to keep the palace running. This wing was the busiest, it was where the commoners congregated and did their commoner business.
"Well, here we are, Auster. I can't wait to see what you decide on." Permafrost admitted with a bright smile on her face. I nodded and headed inside of the jeweler's building.
As I approached the frunt desk, I looked around at all of the rings, necklaces and bracelets that were lining the racks and shelves.
When I finally stood at the counter, an IceWing with pure white scales and pale blue tail spikes and horns greeted me with a small smile. It was my courter leader, Mink. "Hello, I'm here to pick out my 3rd circle jewelry." I said and Mink nodded and puled some rings, necklaces and bracelets off of the rack behind her.
Mink concentrated on me, examining me visually from horn to tail intently before selecting two armbands and a necklace from the pile. The necklace had a plain chain, and a single dark blue crystal in the center.
Looking around at the remaining pieces, I could see a few diamonds sparkling, but even with my untrained eye, I could tell that they were small and cloudy. My gaze drifted back to the blue necklace. It certainly was a pretty jewel, though not as valuable.
After a while of thinking it over for a while, I eventually chose a headband that was embedded with dark blue and silver pearls, a ruby bracelet and a necklace that was strung with sapphires and rubies.
"Step forward and I will place your new possessions upon you." My former commander, now outclassed by myself, placed on her snout a visor, very similar to the one I had worn just a while ago, though this one was clear. After years of dreaming of this moment, it seemed rather dull, as Mink simply slid the bracelet and horn ring into their respective spots.
The necklace felt slightly more special, because I had to dip my head as Mink placed it over my snout. It wasn't a crown; the blue gem rested solidly on my chest instead of my head, but I was elated nonetheless.
Mink gave one more cursory glance over my attire before nodding her approval. Though perhaps she stared at the bracelet for a moment longer than the horn ring and necklace.
"I love the items you chose, it brings out your crimson tail spikes and horns." Bluebird commented with an approving nod of her head. I smiled and gave a curt bow to Bluebird who did the same, then I left the shop and outside to where Permafrost was waiting.
"Three Moons! I absolutely love the rubies and sapphires that you chose, it brings out your tail spikes and horns." Permafrost said with a smile and a nod of her head. I smiled slightly and flicked my tail.
"Let's go back to the library, I need to check out some more scrolls." I said with a sheepish smile. Permafrost laughed quietly at me.
"You sure are a bookworm aren't you, Auster?" Permafrost teased with a playful grin on her face. I pouted and playfully batted her with a wing and she returned the favor.
"How are you liking being in the 3rd circle?" Permafrost asked, and I smiled happily in response.
"It's amazing! I still can't believe it!" I exclaimed with a bright smile on my face and a flap of my ice blue wings.
As we were flying in the Direction of the library, I made some small talk with Permafrost. She seamed a lot like me when it came to talking about the circles and the rankings. "So... Auster, what's your opinion about the circle system?" She asked me and I thought for a moment before I gave my answer.
"A chain of command is certainly needed. I'm not saying that the system is bad or anything... but in practice, the system of the circles are flawed and dated. It doesn't have to go away, but it does need to change." I explained with a thoughtful expression.
"Wow! You certainly are very open about your opinions, aren't you? Do you think that you'd ever become a guard to the Queen?" Permafrost asked, and I frowned and answered truthfully.
"Honestly... I'm not sure what I would want to do. Maybe be a healer or something... but I don't know about that either. I guess it all depends on where I end up next in the rankings." I replied with a shrug of my wings. Permafrost slowly nodded and I had been so focused on my conversation with Permafrost that I didn't notice that we had entered the library.
"Hello again, Auster. Back for some more scrolls to check out?" Icelily asked me with a knowing smile on her face. I laughed quietly and nodded my head. "Ohh... I see that you have jewelry, does that mean you're higher in the rankings?" She asked me with a knowing smile on her face. I nodded with a wide grin on my face.
"Yup! You bet! I still can't believe it myself, this is a dream come true for me!" I exclaimed with an excited flap of my wings. "So, what are you looking for to read this time, Auster?" Icelily asked me with soft smile. I thought for a moment before I answered.
"I am looking for a scroll about the IceWing aristocracy," I replied with a respectful bow and Icelily nodded and went to grab the scrolls I had requested.
"Three Moons! With all of the reading that you do, I bet you're the smartest dragonet in your class!" Icelily remarked with a look of both amusement and amazement.
I blushed and lowered my head in embarrassment. I had never been praised so much before in my whole life.
I flew in through my bedroom window and just as I landed on the carpeted floor, a knock was heard on my door. I ran to open the door.
I swung the door open and standing on the other side was my mother, Seal. She smiled warmly when she saw me standing there, I smiled at her and walked over to my shelf of scrolls and put the newest one on the shelf.
"So, Auster, tell me, how did that meeting of yours go?" My mother asked me with a curious expression. I grinned and told my mother everything that had happened during the meeting.
"That's amazing, Auster! I'm very proud of you, and your father will be thrilled when he hears about it. I'm going to ge deliver the news to him. Have a good evening, Auster." My mother said, smiling at me brightly before she turned and left the room.
"Nope. You heard nothing. Go to sleep, Aus, you look tired. Be ready for the council tomorrow." With that unceremonious dismissal, she turned her back on me and continued sorting her scrolls.
And it was true, all the explanation and deliberation and consideration and other science '-tions' were too much for my rigid mind to handle. He had imprinted more information in my brain in an hour than years of guard training. And he trusted me with his classified information! Probably because I did not understand half of it, but this was the best treatment I had ever received from a higher ranked dragon.
Lying on my sleeping shelf, my mind wandered over my meeting with this bizarre dragon. He acted like no other noble ever. Even the dragons in the 5th circle, technically no better than 6th, felt it necessary to rub their ranks in my snout all the time with frivolous commands.
But not Floe, he valued my opinion, and I'm just a lowly guard! That went against all protocols in the ranking system, but I felt special for once, even though that was one of the warm fuzzy feelings that guard trainers warned against because they made one weak and too emotionally attached.