Glorious Politics
AN: I'm back from vacation, and though I had a lot of fun, I'm glad to be back writing again.
Anyway, not much else to say, so enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Wings of Fire. Sobek, Mistral, and Veneno are my OCs. Shortsail and Mystic belong to Flerovium.
Chapter Thirty-Three:
The Skywing capital was quite the busy place when they arrived. The crowds from the wedding were all gone, but the Skywing military seemed to be out in force. In fact, the other Queens seemed to have had the same thought as Thorn since large groups of Icewing and Mudwing soldiers were waiting outside the palace gates.
All of them, including Glory's group were being watched by Skywing guards. Tensions were high. One wrong move could very well begin another war if the suspicion and distrust between the multiple groups were any sign.
General Levante himself was awaiting their arrival at the main gates, and unlike all of the soldiers she'd seen so far, he wore no armor. "Queen Thorn, Queen Anemone, Queen Glory," he nodded to each of them in kind. "For what it's worth, I do apologize for all of this. Ruby has been completely unreasonable since the fiasco that was supposed to be our wedding. I did try to talk sense into her, believe me."
He actually did appear sincere, and Thorn seemed to pick up on that, too. "I do. But since you seem to understand the farcical nature of this situation, I would implore you make the right decision here. Regardless of your personal feelings toward her, she is in the wrong here."
He sighed but nodded. "I'll do what I can," he swore. "Now I must ask that you leave your troops outside. Each of you can bring a single bodyguard if you wish. And, Lord Mistral? Snowfall awaits your presence in the throne room." That was a kind way of putting it. She was probably more demanding his presence than anything else.
Mistral walked past their group and into the palace without a word, the Skywing guards letting him pass with no interference. Thorn and Glory ordered their troops to stay outside and to not start anything with the other groups. Veneno entered as Glory's bodyguard, and Qibli entered as Thorn's. Anemone said she didn't need one.
As for Winter, he had disappeared as soon as the city came into sight. She had no idea where he was. For all she knew, he could be right next to them or on the other side of the city. He had his assignment, though, so she'd trust him to find Sobek or clues to his location.
The walk to the throne room was silent save for the constant clacking of claws against the marble floors. Skywing guards seemed to be posted at every corner, fully armored and prepared for heavy fighting by the look of it. Levante lead them through the halls to the throne room door, nodding at the guards stationed there to open them.
They opened with a loud creak, allowing the group to see the gathering inside. A large wooden table had been set up in the middle of the floor with Ruby sitting at the head, glaring daggers at Glory, specifically, as the group walked in. Moorhen and Snowfall were already here, both of which were sitting on the left side of the table with a single space open for Levante to sit nearer to Ruby.
Mistral sat next to Snowfall as her bodyguard and advisor while an unknown Mudwing sat next to Moorhen. He was big, though. Taller than even Mistral and probably twice his weight in muscle mass. Moorhen herself seemed almost annoyed by this meeting. Snowfall, however, appeared contemplative. Perhaps winning her over would be easier than Thorn expected it to.
Once the three Queens were seated in their designated spots, Thorn closest to Ruby, Glory in the middle across from Snowfall, and Anemone at the end across from Moorhen, the meeting began with Ruby's declaration. "You have some explaining to do, Glory."
"I do?" the Rainwing repeated, indignantly. "You're the one who sent troops into my Kingdom without my permission! As far as I'm concerned that could be considered a hostile invasion! So yeah, is it any real surprise that I wasn't happy with it?"
"I them there for your own protection!" Ruby snapped back.
Glory almost responded, but Thorn put a claw on her shoulder and replied herself. "You sent them in to send a message, Ruby. The Skywings have long been the strongest force on Pyrrhia. You fear our alliance for reasons I cannot fathom. We have no interest in war with anyone."
Anemone picked it up. "And aren't you always going on about how Pyrrhia needs to be more united? Well, three of the six tribes pretty much have. We're trying to lay the groundwork of a united nations rather than divided tribes. Isn't that what you've always wanted? Or is it only as long as the Skywings are the first among equals?"
"How dare you—"
"Ruby..." Levante started, but Ruby glared at him to be silent.
"The Skywings have been Pyrrhia's guardians for two thousand years! I will not have the status quo broken! A united Pyrrhia would be better, yes, but we deserve to be the ones at the center of these alliances! At least, more so than the weakest tribe on the continent." Glory's ruff flared red at the insult.
"Moons, Ruby, would you listen to yourself?" Levante spoke. "I understand that you're upset about the wedding, but you should be focusing on the ones responsible for that, not Glory. She's more of a victim in this situation than anyone else here."
"Thank you, Levante," Glory nodded appreciatively.
Ruby went to reply, but Snowfall beat her to it. "He's right, you know. More Icewings are being killed, and we're here arguing about a situation you instigated. Glory's response could've been better, I will admit, but you had no right to impede upon the sovereignty of her tribes by sending troops in. If Thorn or Anemone does it, that's fine. They're allies. You should've asked permission, just as I asked you a decade ago if I could send a squad in to track down the original cult."
"But the point still stands—" the Skywing Queen tried, only for Glory to interrupt again.
"There is no point! Instead of letting things be, you're trying to flex your proverbial muscles to intimidate us into bowing to your whims!" Glory scoffed and shook her head. "When you took the throne, I had no idea we were trading one Scarlet for another."
Thorn snapped her gaze to the Rainwing Queen with a clearly displeased expression. "That was uncalled for, Glory."
Glory looked away, already regretting her words. An apology was on the tip of her tongue when a furious snarl ripped forth from Ruby's throat and she slammed her claw on the table as she stood rapidly, her expression thunderous. "I AM NOT MY MOTHER!" She appeared to be shaking with rage. "I have done nothing except clean up her messes ever since I took this throne! Our reputation was in shambles after her, and I restored us to the proud and welcoming tribe we used to be! I—" She blinked a few times, her expression turning to one of confusion, even slight worry. "I feel dizzy..."
Levante stood just as she wobbled, and in fact, she would've fallen if he hadn't caught her. "Ruby!?" Each of the gathered dragons watched in stunned silence as the Skywing Queen fell unconscious right before their eyes, her tongue lolling out of her mouth. Levante placed an ear to her chest to check for a heartbeat. Since he didn't appear to be too panicked, she assumed he had found one. "Find a doctor!" he ordered one of the guards. Then, he turned to the other Queens. "I'm sorry, but this meeting will have to be finished another time."
He lifted the Skywing Queen onto his back and walked out of the throne room, several guards following him upon his command.
"Well...that was certainly unexpected," Moorhen commented. "And for the record, we Mudwings have had our fill of war. If it comes to that, we will not be taking a side, though...you have our moral support."
"Thanks...I think," Glory replied. Mistral was currently talking with Snowfall about something or other, so she turned to Thorn. "What do you think happened?"
Thorn shrugged. "Perhaps she was simply tired or overstressed. If it was poison, she would already be dead." That was a good point. Plus, how would she even have been poisoned? They had no food or drink out here. And come to think of it, Ruby's eyes had seemed a bit bloodshot. She hadn't really thought much about it until now, but it made sense looking back.
"Well, we just got here, so I, for one, have no interest in either flying back home or sitting around and doing nothing," Anemone commented, earning a few nods from Moorhen, Glory, and Thorn. An idea occurred to her then, and she turned to one of the guards. "Do you think we could have lunch served here?"
The Skywing turned to one of her comrades uncertainly, but he simply shrugged. "Umm...sure, I guess." She turned to leave but paused. "Uh...what do you want?"
"Doesn't matter. Tell the chefs to surprise us." The Skywing nodded at Anemone's response and left to give the chefs their order.
"By the way..." Snowfall began. "Mistral tells me the investigation is at a bit of a stand-still right now."
"We have several leads we're pursuing," Thorn responded easily. "One of which is of...great concern. If it's true, your entire Kingdom and your personal safety would be at risk."
Both of the Icewings were rather surprised to hear that. Mistral hadn't been involved with the latest stages of the investigation, so this was his first time hearing about it, too. "I...see... And what, may I ask, is this lead exactly?"
Thorn shook her head. "In private. But first, your word that you won't side with Ruby's insanity."
"You're already helping me by undertaking this investigation. I would be a fool to alienate you, but you have my word, regardless." Thorn nodded appreciatively. It seemed no one supported Ruby's scheme, which was good to hear. The majority of Pyrrhia seemed unwilling to enter a new war so soon after the last two. "Is there anything else you can tell me?"
"My Outclaws are watching a Sandwing named Shortsail in the Scorpion Den, who happens to be our best lead at finding Mystic." Snowfall nodded. She already knew about that one from their gathering after Glory's capture. "Glory also has an agent tracking Sobek as we speak." She neglected to mention who it was or where they were doing it, but Snowfall didn't ask for further details. "Other than those two, the only other possible lead is Vulture himself. Cobra and Mastermind were broken out of my dungeons with help from someone inside, which means he's almost certainly involved in some manner."
"Joy..." Snowfall's tone dripped sarcasm.
"Why would a crime boss want to bring Darkstalker back?" Moorhen wondered.
"To gain favor. Why else? Could you imagine having an animus with no real morality to speak of as an ally?" Everyone looked distinctly uncomfortable from Mistral's explanation.
"Or perhaps he's simply using the cult as a means to an end," Thorn suggested. "This might all be an elaborate plan to get rid of me."
"That's a possibility I hadn't really considered," Snowfall hummed in thought. "Then again, I hadn't known about Vulture's involvement until now. But you said something about someone breaking those two dragons out from the inside? Any ideas about that?"
"None so far," Thorn admitted. "Identifying the mole will take time and cunning. Cunning, I have plenty of. Time, I fear, is against us."
The conversation carried on like that for the next hour until their food arrived. Steak and potatoes certainly wasn't the fanciest meal Glory had ever eaten, but it was certainly delicious even for someone who didn't often eat meat. Levante returned about halfway through their meal, eyeing the spread with confusion, though he didn't comment on it. He merely sat down at the head of the table and waited until everyone was looking to him before speaking.
"Ruby's fine in case any of you were worried. Cliff's with her now." Glory frowned. Despite the good news, Levante seemed shaken, almost in disbelief.
"So what happened? Is something wrong?" she asked.
Levante actually chuckled. "Wrong? No, nothing's wrong." He smiled, though he seemed somewhere else entirely. "Ruby's pregnant...I'm going to be a father."
The news was certainly unexpected, but it was definitely a welcome distraction from the normal doom and gloom. "I believe congratulations are in order," Moorhen said.
Thorn and Anemone both congratulated him, to which he smiled and thanked them in kind. Glory was about to do the same, but then she noticed Snowfall glancing at Mistral wistfully. A shot of jealousy went through her, but she just grit her teeth and ignored it as best she could. Mistral already said that he didn't love Snowfall like that.
He also said he didn't love her, but that's beside the point.
"The doctor said that this whole thing," he gestured around at the table, "was probably the result of some particularly nasty mood swings brought on from a combination of stress and hormonal imbalances. She apologizes for all of this, particularly to you, Glory."
Glory nodded. "Well, on the bright side, it gave us the chance to update everyone on the investigation," Thorn smiled. Then, she frowned. "I do hope something like this never happens again, though. We should be standing together against the cult rather than at each other's throats for such silly reasons."
Levante nodded his agreement. "She also made sure to have a room readied for each of you if you didn't want to fly back to your respective Kingdoms immediately."
Glory looked at Thorn and then Anemone, both of whom nodded. "I think we'll take the rooms."
"Agreed," Snowfall nodded. "You can tell me your important news there, Thorn." The Sandwing Queen nodded, and Levante ordered some of the remaining guards to show them all to their rooms, saying he needed to be with Ruby right now. Moorhen's bodyguard, Qibli, and Veneno, all of whom hadn't spoken much during the entire exchange left to order the troops to stand down and disperse until the morning. Mistral volunteered himself to do the same for the Icewings and left before Snowfall could say otherwise.
It'd been over twelve years since Ruby had Cliff. She had to wonder what the Skywing Queen was thinking right now. And Cliff, for that matter. How was the Prince taking the news? "Pretty crazy, huh?" Anemone began. They were walking down the corridors to the guest rooms. "We come here expecting war declarations to be thrown around, and it all ends up with Ruby being pregnant and this being a waste of time...mostly. The food was good, at least."
Glory snorted. "I was thinking the same thing. Not about the food, but about Ruby. I wonder how her and Cliff are taking the news. It's been a long time since she had him."
"I'm sure Cliff will love and protect his new sibling like a loving older brother should," Thorn commented. "It'll be an all-new experience for him, having a younger sibling that looks up to him."
"I'm sure it'd be a little strange," Glory shrugged. "I mean, Cliff's old enough to be their father at this point. Aren't most siblings closer in age than that?"
"Most but not all," Anemone replied. "If Orca were still alive, she'd be old enough to be Auklet's mom. And some of my older brothers are old enough to be some of my youngest brothers' dads. It happens sometimes."
"I think your family is more the exception than the rule," Glory snickered, and Anemone rolled her eyes in amusement, even throwing a playful punch at Glory's shoulder.
Each of them had their own room, so nobody would have to share. Guard patrols were doubled in this particular section of the palace as a precaution, even if that hadn't seemed to matter last time. The thought of being in a room alone after what happened the last time she put herself in that exact situation was more than a little nerve-wracking, but she never said anything once she entered and nothing bad happened immediately afterward. However, as the hours passed and the sun began to set, that same anxiety came back. Maybe she'd leave her door cracked open just in case. That way, the guards could see and hear what was happening inside more easily. In fact, she could ask one of them to stand outside for the entire night. No one could blame her, for certain.
She was just about to go do that when a voice sounded behind her. "Queen Glory, I—"
She screamed. The guards broke down her door. It was a whole mess.
When she finally calmed down enough to think straight, and the guards had detained the perpetrator, she groaned upon seeing who it was. "Three moons, Winter, are you trying to give me a heart attack!? Knock next time!"
"Is everything okay in there?" Thorn asked, turning the corner and stepping over the busted door.
"We heard screams." Anemone stepped in behind Thorn before her gaze landed on Winter, who was still pinned by two Skywings, who seemed utterly confused by the situation. No doubt they thought this dragon was a threat to Glory's life, yet she was just chewing the dragon out like they knew each other. "Are you creeping on Glory, Winter?"
"What!? NO! I would never!" he vehemently denied. "Can I get up now?" Glory glared at him for scaring the life out of her for a few more moments before nodding and apologizing to the Skywings.
Right after they left, the other two Icewings came in. Mistral and Winter nodded at each other politely. Snowfall, however, was quite surprised to see her cousin here. "Winter, why are you in Queen Glory's guest room in the Skywing palace?"
"I was going to give her my report in private and be gone before anyone else noticed me, but I guess that's not going to happen anymore," he grumbled.
"Report?" Snowfall asked confused. She sent a glance to Glory for explanation.
Glory answered, but she was upfront about it. "After you banished him again, I decided to offer him a place in my Kingdom. Winter is in my service now by his own choice. He's the one tracking Sobek for me."
Snowfall remained quiet, even wincing when the word 'banish' was brought up. She couldn't even meet her cousin's gaze, so ashamed was she. "Thank you for taking care of him, Glory," she whispered sincerely. "At least he has somewhere to belong." Winter glared at his former Queen for speaking as if he wasn't even there—and probably for banishing him in the first place. "Regardless of who you serve now, however, I need to ask you a favor, Winter."
"Why should I help you? You took everything from me! Twice!" Glory could understand his anger, but it was blinding him right now.
"What is it?" Glory asked. Snowfall looked hesitant to answer, so Glory continued. "He's never going to help you out of the goodness of his heart, Snowfall. Not anymore. You hurt him badly. Tell me what it is, and if it's important enough, I'll order him to go do it. But it better be more important than tracking down Sobek."
"It is," Thorn answered, taking both her and Winter by surprise. "All of you, go!" she ordered the curious bystanders, such as Moorhen, Veneno, and Qibli. Among those who began to leave were Mistral and Anemone, but Thorn stopped them both. "Not you two. Both of you need to hear this, too."
Thorn nodded at Qibli and Veneno, who nodded back. Apparently, they already knew what was about to be said. Veneno raised the door and set it back in place as best as possible given its condition. Snowfall also went over and locked the door to the balcony. The deadbolt latched with an audible click. "I need you to go to Sanctuary and check on my sister, Crystal. Make sure she's okay, and then get her someplace safe."
Winter furrowed his eye ridges in confusion. "Why?"
Snowfall sighed and glanced at Mistral. "Operation Queen-Maker was supposed to involve more than just Mistral and I. Morrowseer wanted to create a civil war between Mistral's family and ours. In the conflict, he had contingencies in place to make sure certain dragons died, not only to increase the unrest but also to make sure the dragon he wanted on the throne actually got to it."
"He wanted a puppet ruler to take command of the Icewings?" Mistral growled. "Who?"
Snowfall's expression was sorrowful, but it was Thorn who answered. "Icicle." Everyone gasped at the revelation, and Winter looked downright horrified. "Even before the situation with Scarlet during the Jade Mountain incident, he knew Icicle would cave to foreign powers with the right leverage. That's why he sent an anonymous tip to the Skywings. That patrol didn't luck onto you and your brother, Winter. Morrowseer figured out where you'd be and sent them there. He knew Scarlet would want them to capture one or both of you to use as leverage. He would've made a deal with Icicle, pretty much identical to the one Scarlet made years later. 'Help me, and you'll get your brother back.'"
Snowfall picked up the explanation. "The cult is using Morrowseer's plan pretty much to the letter. They want Icicle on the throne. That's why they wanted to capture you so badly. They wanted to hold your life over her to secure her cooperation."
Glory watched as Winter's posture deflated, and he slumped to the ground in disbelief. "I thought they were trying to kill me..." He shook his head. "But Icicle would never betray the Icewings for me. She hates me."
Snowfall shook her head. "She loves you, Winter. More than even she knows. You're her brother, and despite your faults, she does care about you. When word first came that you were attacked and were missing three years ago, I could see how she worried, even if she never said anything." Winter didn't look convinced.
"When it comes down to it, Icicle isn't going to let you be killed, Winter. So what if you're not her favorite brother? She'll still be devastated if you died, especially if she had the power to prevent it." Winter looked away, Mistral's words circulating in his head.
"What does all this have to do with Crystal?" he eventually asked, his voice quiet.
"They want to use her to get to me," Snowfall explained. "Her oath prevents her from taking the throne, but Morrowseer knew mother would never sacrifice one of her own daughters to save her own life. And I wouldn't sacrifice my sister to save mine."
"What happened to tribe before self?" Winter scoffed.
"Mom never believed in it," Snowfall shrugged. "At least, not in the extremes that Mistral does. She cared about her tribe, but she was just another dragon. She loved her family. It was her one weakness. Mine, too."
"Didn't stop you from banishing me," he snapped.
"I bent rules to save your life, Winter. If I had followed our laws—my laws—to the letter, you would be without a head right now," she snapped back. "Look, I get you're upset with me, and I understand why, but one day, you're going to have to look in a mirror and realize most of the responsibility lies on your shoulders. You chose to release Foeslayer. I understand why you did it. I do. But that doesn't change the facts. What you did was treason."
Winter just growled, not liking what he was hearing in the slightest. "Then you can save your own sister."
He made to put on his necklace, but Mistral lunged forward and grabbed his wrist. "This is bigger than whatever anger you're holding onto, Winter," he began calmly, though Glory could see that his expression was furious and his eyes were hard. "This could very well be the end of the Ice Kingdom as a sovereign nation, a place ruled by Vulture—or maybe Darkstalker—and his puppet Queen. And that's if Darkstalker even allows any of us to live."
"I've heard enough," Glory suddenly declared, and all eyes turned to her. "Winter, go find Crystal and bring her to the Sea Kingdom."
"Why my Kingdom?" Anemone asked.
"Thorn's palace is compromised. The Rainforest doesn't have the necessary security. The Mudwings are still neutral as far as I know, and Sobek may still very well be running around the Sky Kingdom. Yours is the only safe Kingdom left unless we count the Ice Kingdom." Anemone seemed to accept that explanation, and Thorn nodded, impressed.
"Crystal won't come back to the Ice Kingdom. Her husband is a Mudwing," Snowfall explained. "He hates the snow. Plus, one of our Gifts of Diplomacy is apparently in our enemies' dirty claws, so our Ice Cliff doesn't mean squat anymore."
Anemone shrugged. "I still have magic, you know. I could solve literally all of our problems in the snap of a claw."
"That's kind of why we're trying to prevent Darkstalker from coming back," Mistral responded, letting Winter's wrist go. Winter rubbed his sore wrist and sent a glare to the back of the other Icewing's head. "No one should have that kind of power. And those who do shouldn't use it so flippantly."
Anemone scoffed. "Flippantly? Really?" Anemone crossed the room and got right up in Mistral's face. He did not back away. "It's not the magic, you ass. It's the dragon who uses it. I understand what it can do, so I only use small spells to benefit either myself or others. I have no ulterior motives when using it because I saw first-claw what the power I wield can do to a dragon who has no morals." She backed away with a huff. "My offer still stands," she said as she started walking out, moving the door out of the way. "But I won't use it until you ask me all nice-like."
Mistral glared at the retreating Seawing until Thorn spoke up. "I mostly agree with you, Mistral. I don't think we should be throwing spells around all willy-nilly. If conventional methods can prevent this disaster, great. However, if it comes down to it, I would rather take up Anemone's offer than risk Darkstalker returning. Wouldn't you?"
He was silent for a long while. "A last resort," he eventually agreed.
"So, Winter...what was your report again?" Glory asked, bringing them back to the initial reason for this little chat.
"I searched the cultists' base in the sewers, but I found nothing of value. Some rotting food and a few scraps of plain cloth, but that's about it. The brazier was still warm, though, and the ashes were fresh. Someone burned something in it, whether it was to destroy evidence or just to keep warm, I couldn't say. I searched as much of the sewers as I could after that but found nothing. If Sobek and Magnificent are here in the Sky Kingdom, I doubt they're still down there."
"Well...it's a start. Now that we know where they aren't, it's time to figure out where they are." Thorn looked around. "Any suggestions?"
AN: That's an open-ended question, by the way. If anyone has any thoughts or ideas, feel free to share.
But the biggest twist here is Icicle. How involved in this is she? Or is she involved at all just yet? Things are certainly getting interesting here.
Until Next Time
AdmiralCole22