Chapter Fifty Five

The sun was setting, streaking the sky with a deep red against amber clouds. It reminded Vulture of blood against sand. It was an omen, his superstitious mother used to say, and for once, she was probably right. For tonight was the night. The night where everything would change. After so long waiting, after so much work, the end was in sight. The world would never be the same after this.

Though that wasn't to say he felt certain about how things would play out. He'd done his best, toed the line between insistent without being too overzealous. Not that it seemed to matter. For the past five days, Darkstalker had been in a horrendously foul mood, secluding himself either in the library or his own chambers, only coming out whenever the NightWing Council had need of him. When he spoke with anyone else, he seemed perfectly civil and put together but Vulture knew better. He could see the cracks, could feel how the ancient NightWing was just one push away from falling off the edge.

It was still a question as to whether this tense situation was better for his grand plan or not. All of this stemmed from when Moonwatcher left - she was the cause of the magnitude of this emotional upset. That could work out in Vulture's favour. Over the past five days he'd been dropping hints here and there to try and further drive a wedge between Darkstalker and his attachment to the NightWing female. For Vulture was no fool: he knew that if anything could create a hitch in his plan, it was her and the insidious hold that she had on Darkstalker. But every time he brought her up, Darkstalker would get cold and distant and would shut down all conversation about her. That might've been encouraging, and could have indicated that Darkstalker was more focused on the plan. But Vulture didn't like not having 100% assurance of anything.

So, he needed to be sure that tonight went along perfectly.

He heard the distant flapping of wings and turned to see the SandWing that approached his balcony. Sirocco landed a little clumsily, but Vulture was willing to forgive that just this once. At least his grandson looked properly contrite after his five day exile. Honestly, Vulture would've sent him away for longer, he was just too much of a liability most of the time. But now, the next phase of the plan depended on him.

"G-Grandfather," Sirocco mumbled, trying to bow his head to be respectful, anything to get in his good graces.

"Tonight is the night," said Vulture, turning his gaze back towards the setting sun. "Everything we've been building is for this moment. Our dreams are about to come true. Do you know why I need you?"

"To make sure it all goes to plan?"

"Exactly." From the inside pocket of his cloak, Vulture pulled out glitter gold and ruby amulet, holding it up so as to watch it sparkle in the light. "We will have everything, Sirocco, make no mistake of that."

He handed his grandson the Amulet, and Sirocco hastily went to grab it and put it on. Not out of eagerness, Vulture was certain, but because he wanted to please his grandfather quickly. When the amulet lay against his breastbone, Sirocco squeezed his eyes shut and pursed his lips - his thinking face. It didn't take long. His scales blackened, the barb on his tail vanished, and the sail along his spine was replaced with spikes. Though his features were made to look more like a NightWing, Vulture could still see the same shape of his face, the same build, the same dumb expressions. Once the transformation was complete, Sirocco took off the Amulet of Concealment and immediately gave it back to his grandfather.

"Now go," said Vulture, putting the Amulet on himself. "Go, and make sure everything goes to plan. Make sure our new world will be born from the corpse of the old."

The night of the two crescent moons was upon them. Moon could feel the weight of destiny resting heavy on her back as she flew in formation with all her friends. They'd been flying through the afternoon and now, with the sun down and the moons out, they finally could see their destination coming into sight. Blaze's palace was lit up like a beacon, with braziers on the turrets and towers and in the courtyards, colourful streams of fabric hung from every window and wall, the smell of spices and foods thick in the air. Somewhere out of sight, Moon could distantly hear the drums and bells and guitars of musicians. It felt like a party more than a serious meeting of the seven most powerful individuals in all of Pyrrhia.

There was a call, and she turned her head in time to see Qibli flying up to them from below. He'd left early and diverted from their path to see to his own mission. Now he was returning to them just before they made it to their destination. "How'd it go?" Sunny asked him over the howling wind.

"Thorn and the Outclaws are in position!" he yelled back. "They'll stay out of sight and be ready for if anything happens."

"They won't get caught?" Moon asked.

Qibli grinned. "Thorn's made a career out of eluding royal guards."

Not ten minutes later, she, the Jade Winglet and the Dragons of Destiny all landed just outside the palace. Soldiers were lined either side of the path leading up to the main gate, their armour polished to a dazzling shine - to the point where it looked like it was made of tin rather than iron. With little other direction, with Tsunami leading the way, the group began to walk down the aisle, through the gates and into the huge courtyard.

Moon had never been inside the SandWing palace before, and even when her friends had described it to her, it didn't seem to hold a candle to the true thing. The white stone was made silver in the moonlight, the soft curves and circular windows made for a more inviting design than Moon would've thought. Inside the main courtyard was yet more splashes of colour, food and music. And across from them, directing other dragons to adorn her palace with the last finishing touches, was Blaze.

She was perhaps the most beautiful dragon Moon had ever seen. Her sandy scales had been oiled and shone in the firelight, her sail was perfectly curved and wavy, her eyes had been shadows with makeup. She was adorned with so much finery, such as a golden chain that dangled in a loop from her ears to a ring on her nose-horn. A purple silk scarf was wrapped around her neck, and she wore so many bangles and rings. Between her horns was perched the SandWing crown.

As soon as she noticed them, Blaze squealed in delight and came bounding over. "Yes! You're finally here! Welcome to my palace - isn't it lovely? So much better than what Burn and Blister did with the place. No more rotting heads on spikes! And I have you all to thank, considering it was you who put me here, after all."

Sunny frowned. "Did we though?"

"Well, yes. You dragons fought the war, my two sisters died and I'm the only one left. Ergo, that makes me the Queen chosen by destiny! And tonight we are going to celebrate! I do hope you like roasted dates. Servants!" Blaze clapped her talons together. "See to our guests!"

From out of nowhere, servant dragons swept in on all sides, shoving trays full of small bite-sized foods under their noses, or wrapping silk scarfs around their necks. Moon politely refused the food but wasn't quick enough to dodge the green scarf that was thrust upon her. All of her friends were adorned with similar finery - aside from Peril, who set a servant into a panic when her scarf burst into flames. The SkyWing grumbled for the servants to forget about her, to which Kinkajou cheerily offered to take her scarf instead. Winter then also gave the RainWing his blue scarf, and Tsunami gave up her yellow. Pretty soon Kinkajou was drowning in multiple layers of coloured fabric, grinning all the while.

"Splendid!" Blaze cheered. "I want all my guests to look their best for my party. Come to the terrace, that is where our meeting will happen. Your RainWing friend is here already."

Blaze led the way, directing the group under archways and through the gardens. Qibli, ever with a critical eye, couldn't help but remark as he peered around them. "Quite the shindig you're throwing here, Blaze. Considering the turmoil in your kingdom."

One of Blaze's guards glared at Qibli, snorting smoke at him. His mind was furious at the slight against his queen, by not addressing her by her proper title. He was weighing up whether or not to scorch Qibli for his lack of respect, and Moon was grateful when he decided to let it slide - this time.

Oblivious, Blaze perked up her ears as if she had just discovered some new toy. "Shindig! I like that word."

"What turmoil?" Clay asked instead.

"Blister's loyalists didn't disappear overnight," Qibli explained. "According to Thorn, they've been causing unrest across the kingdom. But everything's okay so long as Blaze can spend her fortune on her parties and comforts."

The Queen had the sense to look a little offended by that as she turned to regard Qibli over her shoulder. "I can't do everything all at once, you know. Besides, they just need time to get to know me. Once everyone realises how fun and good I am, they won't need to grumble about anything."

Moon could see inside the Queen's mind and realised rather paradoxically that Blaze was not being intentionally selfish, rather she just didn't fully grasp the needs of her tribe. She genuinely believed that if she made dragons happy then they would love her. For if she was inoffensive then what could they complain about? It was embarrassingly naive and a poor attitude to have when it came to ruling, Moon realised. She could read in Blaze's thoughts an annoyance that tonight was already going to be marred with politics and she wanted no further take away from 'her night'.

They arrived at the terrace, a large wide raised white stone platform which overlooked the rest of the gardens. Small fountains were evenly spaced out in the distance, their wells must've been dug deep, it explained why the SandWing palace had been built here - it was built on top of a natural oasis. The gardens were strange yet beautifully so, with various cacti species arranged symmetrically, with palm trees and flowering blooms growing between them. The terrace itself was wide enough that Moon could easily imagine all the guests for tonight could fit comfortably. The floor was the smoothest white stone, and the east and west side of the terrace had what looked to be (at first) pointless rounded archways. But on closer inspection, Moon realised that they were positioned perfectly so that the light of sunrise and sunset would shine directly through a glass disk at the top of the arch.

As promised, Blaze directed them all to Queen Glory, who sat with her back straight and wings tightly folded beside a low brazier in the centre of the terrace. The fire illuminated her in such a way that it made her stern face seem quite severe. Strangely, Moon noticed something on Glory's head that she'd never seen before. It was a crown, or sorts, with midnight-blue cloth running over the top of her head and round gold pendants by her ears. Feathers of every colour stuck out from the top of the crown between her horns, and also to hang beside her ruff. It made it look like a great feathered mane, making Glory appear more mythological than real. Three midnight ropes looped beneath her chin, completing the crown. Behind her sat her brother Jambu and another, older male who's scales were predominantly purple and blue. Moon recognised him from her time in Jade Mountain. He was Mangrove, one of Glory's top advisors, the one she had helped to free his mate, Orchid, from the volcano island when she escaped captivity, along with Kinkajou. All three RainWings looked up as the group arrived.

"Here we are!" Blaze said in a sing-song voice. "Sit, sit everyone! Refreshments will be along shortly."

The dragons of Destiny and the Jade Winglet looked to each other before awkwardly picking their seats amidst the piles of cushions that were spread in a circle around the brazier. Peril decided to sit between one of the archways behind the group, so that her scales couldn't catch anything on fire by accident. Blaze sat down on the largest, most expensive looking cushion of all. She clapped her talons and somewhere, hidden amongst the bushes of the gardens, a small band of musicians began to play. Once again, servants appeared to try and offer their new queen some tidbits of food which she joyfully began to browse.

"What's with this?" Clay asked in amazement, pointing at Glory's crown.

The RainWing Queen shuffled as if nervous by the attention. "Grandmother Grandeur said this was how old RainWing queens used to have their crowns. They liked all the colours. As a symbol of our reclaimed land, she said I should wear the old trappings again. The crown I can live with - but the leopard skins…" she shuddered in revulsion.

Tsunami snorted. "You look like a stuffed peacock."

Clay looked around hopefully, eyes big. "Do you think Blaze'll be serving peacock?"

"How long've you been here?" Sunny asked quietly as she took her seat beside Glory, smuggling her an enchanted golden-amber earring.

"About an hour," Glory said stiffly as she put on the jewellery, having to tilt her head so that she could reach her own ear behind her crown. "We decided to take the NightWing tunnel to save on time. Blaze has been chatting my ear off about anything but the agenda for tonight."

Starflight smiled as he was directed to sit between Tsunami and Clay. "Why doesn't it surprise me that you were organised enough to arrive an hour early,"

"Everyone remember the plan?" Qibli asked.

"Yes," Tsunami said whilst levelling a look at him that Moon couldn't quite work out.

Winter touched Moon's arm gently until she turned to look at him. He held out a piece of Skyfire towards her, the black stone had a piece of twine wrapped around it so that it could be worn like a ring. "Moon… please take it. Just in case."

She shook her head. "If Darkstalker arrives and I am closed off to him, he will immediately be suspicious and wonder why. He can rationalise all of you being standoffish, but not me. And we need him to act as he normally would, to get to the truth."

The IceWing slowly lowered his offering, looking a little disappointed. "Alright. But if you change your mind…" he left the rest unsaid, but Moon nodded.

"Everyone else will be arriving soon," said Tsunami to the others. "Keep your guard up until we know what we're dealing with. If all goes well then we won't have to-"

"You know," Blaze interrupted as she popped a cashew nut into her mouth. "I like the fact that you're all wearing matching earrings, is it so you can tell you're all part of a club? But I don't remember the Dragons of Destiny having two SeaWings. Why do you have one?"

Turtle self consciously fiddled with his own earring. "Uh, well, you see-"

"They're for a club!" Kinkajou piped up

"Oh," Blaze cocked her head, as if in thought. "Well. You could've picked a nicer looking earring. I could have some made for you if you like-"

"NightWing incoming!" shouted a scout from the palace walls.

Moon's heart skipped a beat. The gardens and the terrace went silent. And then she heard it - wingbeats. A singular set, deep and powerful. Darkstalker had come alone. Winter threw one last pleading look Moon's way, before clutching the ring in his fist to tuck it out of sight as they all looked to the sky.

It was hard even for her to spot him against the darkness of the night sky, his black scales and star-speckled wings camouflaging him perfectly. It wasn't until he tucked in his wings to dive right out of the sky that she spotted him as the light from the fires on the walls glinted against the line of silver scales that ran beneath his wings. He landed with the acrobatic finesse of a circus performer, something that might've made Moon smile if she wasn't so tense. Darkstalker strutted onto the edge of the terrace, looking as handsome and regal as ever, a dashing roguish smile on his face. Blaze stared up at him in awe, her thoughts racing with attraction. Moon was a little disgusted that she couldn't take even this seriously.

"You all came - excellent! Obviously, I knew you would - visions of the future and all that. But still, it's good to be proven right." He bowed to Blaze. "Your Majesty, thank you for graciously agreeing to host this little gathering. And congratulations on your throne by the way. The crown suits you."

Blaze grinned and cracked open an ivory fan so that she could fan herself coyly. "Oh-ho-ho! Thank you!"

He then turned to the rest of the group. "And here you are, the famous Dragons of Destiny. I apologise for not introducing myself when last we met - things were a little chaotic. I am Darkstalker, animus and advisor of the NightWings. An honour to make your acquaintance."

"You came alone?" Tsunami asked, frowning. "Won't the NightWing Queen be coming? Or her Councillors? Or even a bodyguard?"

"Queen Greatness is on a pilgrimage at the moment and cannot be disturbed," Darkstalker replied easily. "And considering the recent animosities between the NightWing tribe and… well, everyone else, it was deemed appropriate that I attend this meeting and speak on behalf of my tribe. I was a neutral party in the war, and therefore can speak fairly. And besides, I am not alone - my other royal advisor is already here!"

He held out his talon to Moon. All eyes turned to her. Instantly she felt a bit of stage fright, a sense of claustrophobia and exposure all rolled into one. Beside her, Winter stiffened, his wing twitching as if to unfurl and block Moon from view. If Darkstalker noticed, he gave no sign of it. Moon stepped forward, brushing Winter's flank with her tail in what she hoped was a soothing manner. She took Darkstalker's talon in hers, and allowed herself to be drawn into his embrace as he brought her close and pressed his forehead against hers. Their minds came together and Moon was awash in his music. Something inside of her clicked into place, like something had been missing from her for the past week. Everything felt just as it had done before she left, it almost felt like all the nightmarish things that had happened belonged to a dream.

Darkstalker took in a long breath. "I've missed you, Moon," he whispered.

"I've missed you too." And she had. Now that she was close to him, she could see every scale on his face, the handsome gleam of his blue-silver eyes. He even had a strange silver earring in his right ear that looked like a fish - she couldn't remember ever seeing that on him before. It hurt to think just how much she'd missed him. But then, as they pulled away, she remembered everything she'd learned, the journal, the dream, the letter. She couldn't let herself be distracted by fantasies of wishing for all the awfulness of the world to never be. We need to talk, she told him in the privacy of their minds.

I agree. His voice rumbled through her mind, but… oddly distant. But first, we must deal with this. He stood tall again, Moon at his side. "I would say you should introduce me to your friends, Moon, but then, we've already met. Hello again, little dragons! It's so much nicer to be seeing you in such better circumstances."

Kinkajou's ruff puffed out indignantly. "I am not little, thank you very much! I was the largest hatchling in my batch, I'll have you know."

Darkstalker chuckled and tapped Kinkajou's forehead with the tip of a claw. "It's so cute how you think you're so feisty."

Turtle looked like he wanted to jump in between them, but held himself back. Moon felt sympathy for him. They'd all agreed it was better for him to continue to be hidden from Darkstalker until it was unavoidable.

"Don't touch her," Winter bit out before he could stop himself.

Darkstalker withdrew his talon, his expression looking a little too surprised. "I am sorry, Prince Winter, I meant no offence. I understand why you would be suspicious of me, considering all I've done. But I hope we can work on that - you can't walk around forever thinking I'm going to enchant dragons to do whatever I want."

Moon's spine went solid and her heart skipped a beat. She and Winter shared a quick look. That sentence had felt too familiar, somehow. Darkstalker had never liked Winter, she knew, so perhaps he was just pointedly voicing all the jabs Winter had made over the past year. But still… she felt a small drop of dread weigh heavy in her stomach.

Darkstalker…? She began to say.

But he'd already turned away from Winter and focused his attention on someone else. "Sunny!" he cried with enormous delight. "You're much smaller than I thought you'd be - for such a shaker of worlds as you. I've wanted to meet you for such a long time."

Sunny's wings fluttered a little, like she wanted to open them wide. "You have?"

"Yes. Haven't your guessed? I'm your great-great-great-great-great-however-many-times uncle! Your father is the descendant of my sister, Whiteout. You know, you have the same shape to your eyes as her. She would've really liked you, I think."

The little SandWing looked at the ground, like the whole world just got a little bigger to her. "I guess I always kind of knew it, but… I never really thought about it."

"We will have plenty of time to catch up later," said Darkstalker, smiling sweetly. "I would really love to get to know you, if you wish."

A horn blared, and someone shouted. Dragons were coming. Moon and the others all lifted their heads to see the sky filled with wings. She felt Darkstalker nudging her and followed him. They took their seats across from the Dragons of Destiny and her friends. Darkstalker sat beside Blaze and Moon sat beside him. Blaze clapped her talons together excitedly. It was about to begin.

They dropped out of the sky one by one, and as they did so Moon became familiar with their minds enough to know their names. The first to land were the MudWings: Queen Moorhen and two of her siblings, her sister Otter and her brother Moss. Moorhen was without a doubt the strongest dragon Moon had ever seen - the muscles of her chest and shoulders were enormous, her tail thick and heavy like an oak branch. Across her face, along her horns, down her neck and across her shoulders, Moorhen was decorated with paint in intricate patterns and lines in exquisite colours of gold, purple and bright red. She was also decorated with bright cloth wrappings and the feathers of a scarlet ibis. Her siblings were similarly decorated, though nowhere near as extravagant. Moon stared in wonder at the strong queen - she'd never met any MudWings from the higher nobility and to see their traditions proudly worn on their scales was a marvel to behold. Moorhen sat between Moon and her friends, making the smaller NightWing feel like a twig next to her hugeness.

Next came Queen Ruby, along with her own two attendants: her brother Vermillion and one of her senior officers, Avalanche. They sat on the other side of Blaze, with Ruby at the front and her two attendants behind. Ruby had forgone wearing the extravagant sunburst crown that Peril had once described as typical for the SkyWing queens. Instead, she wore a simple golden circlet - perhaps that was more practical to fly with than the huge crown. But her upper arms and the biceps of her wings still had their gold bands and her claws were covered in gold and pearl talonsheaths. Ruby was beautiful, her features angular and sharp, her gaze warm yet fierce at the same time.

And then down came Queen Coral. Though she'd seen her in Tsunami, Turtle and Anemone's mind, it still shocked Moon to realise just how much Tsunami resembled her mother. They had the same shade of blue to their scales, the same shape to their face. Coral wore a gold crown, though Moon couldn't decide if the floral-like decoration resembled more of a leaf or seaweed. At the centre of the crown was an enormous Aquaprase, glittering different shades of blue, green and flecks of amber. Wrapped around her horns and down her neck were strings of pearls and on her tail was strapped a narwhal horn. With their queen came grizzled and sour looking Commander Shark (the Queen's brother) and another high ranking soldier, a female called Kelp. Coral landed gracefully and looked around the circle. Her eyes found Tsunami and there was a jolt through her mind that spoke out to Moon. She could feel that Coral wanted nothing more than to go to her eldest daughter, to pick her up in her arms and embrace her tightly. She'd missed her so much, but was afraid - afraid of Tsunami's resentment, afraid of getting too close only to be burned by fate again, afraid of rejection. The inside of Coral's head wasn't at all what Moon expected - there was arrogance there, yes, but more than anything Moon could feel a great love inside of her so strong it was actually causing her harm, fracturing her mind bit by bit. So much grief, hope, loss, longing and paranoia had taken its toll over the years.

Was my mother like that? Moon thought to herself with a sharp pang of grief in her heart. Secretkeeper had lost children in the egg just as Coral had. Moon had never ventured into her mother's head far enough to see what she now saw in the SeaWing Queen, this desperation for a child, to be proven not a failure, the paralysing fear that would make you do anything to keep your precious child safe.

Tsunami stared across the circle at her mother, a lot of different emotions running through her head. Moon desperately wanted to shake her, to urge her to go to her mother, for the pair of them to speak plainly with one another for the first time in their lives. So much of their distrust of one another stemmed from miscommunication and it seemed like such a waste to not fix this…

But then Coral broke eye contact and sat down beside Glory. One space was left vacant in their circle. Blaze fretted, tapping her claws together anxiously. "I'm sure Glacier is just running late - maybe the winds were against her. She'd never miss one of my parties."

Or she has made her choice, Darkstalker whispered in Moon's head. There was a heavy, disappointed sigh. It gave Moon hope - surely, if Darkstalker had planned that assassination, he would've been counting on Glacier not showing up! Did this mean…?

Moorhen snorted, speaking before Moon could capitalise on that thought. "She knew the time and place. I say we begin without her." The MudWing Queen's voice was deep with a hint of grated edge, like someone suffering from a throat injury.

"I agree," voiced Ruby.

"Very well," said Darkstalker, clapping his tail upon the ground. "First order of business, myself and the NightWing tribe would like to be the first to congratulate Blaze on winning the war and obtaining the SandWing throne."

Blaze's face morphed from wordy over Glacier to smiling cheerily, tilting her head in a way she believed was her best angle. "Why thank you! There were times when I didn't believe I was the chosen one, you know. But fate came through for me in the end!"

"We didn't technically choose you," Sunny piped up, unable to stop herself, even when Glory elbowed her ribs.

"Of course you did," Blaze chuckled condescendingly. "I'm the only sister left, right?"

"I will also point out," said Darkstalker. "That nowhere in the prophecy does it say that the Dragonets of Destiny will choose the SandWing Queen. Only that you are 'born to end the fight'. I would say you more than did that."

"One of the few times I've encountered prophecies being so literal," Moon muttered.

Sometimes things are not as complicated as they appear to be, Darkstalker said to her privately. There seemed to be some hint in his voice.

But my father's prophecy was fake. He made it up so that his choice for the SandWing throne would help him take over the RainWing forest. That's what it meant by "bow to a fate that is stronger and higher".

Your father was a fake, but perhaps his prophecy transformed into something real. Belief is a powerful thing. Dragons all across this continent believed in it for so long, perhaps that belief influenced the threads of fate enough to change the course of destiny. Don't you believe that that could be possible, that if we have the will and means to do so we can make our future how we want?

Moon looked up at him, to find him watching her carefully, his long snout and spiralling horns haloed by one of the crescent moons, his silver-blue eyes seeming to glow in the dim light. I believe that destiny is what we make it. No one dragon can control it - we all shape it together.

But nothing is certain, right? He pressed, something desperate in his voice, straining the music of his mind. We can make the world better even when it seems like the darkest hour? A bad future can - and should - be avoided?

Darkstalker, Moon tried to reach out to him, to grasp hold of his emotions, to see what was wrong. What do you-?

"You weren't even in this war half the time!" Moorhen suddenly snapped, pulling Moon out of her own head. She hadn't even registered that the meeting had carried on, and now Coral and Moorhen were bristling at each other. "Too busy hiding your heads under the waves - you never risked anything like we did."

"I will not apologise for not losing as many SeaWing lives as the rest of you!" Coral turned her nose up, glaring down at Moorhen out of the side of her eye. "And I don't see any of you reprimanding Glacier like this for doing the exact same thing as me."

Ruby growled. "Don't worry, we'll get to her." She looked to Darkstalker. "Didn't you say in your letter that anyone who doesn't come will be made an example of? I say we get to that part."

Winter was practically vibrating with rage, but Qibli put his talons on his arm to hold him back. Starflight was the one who spoke up. "Queen Ruby, punishing Glacier like this will only extend these hostilities. This meeting is meant to end them."

"Yeah! You can't all gang up on Glacier!" Blaze stammered. "That's not fair!"

"It's not about extending tensions," Moorhen shook her head. "It's about making things even. The MudWings were forced to take a side at the start of this war, and then we were battered and used by every side since. Blister isn't alive anymore for me to take my justice. So I want compensation from her sister instead."

Blaze's eyes went wide. "What?"

Ruby nodded. "Between all three of you, you and your sisters caused a lot of harm to all of us - I agree we should get something in return for our losses."

"That seems fair," said Darkstalker, turning to Blaze. "You've given land to the IceWings as a reward for their loyalty, Queen Blaze. But many lives have been lost. They deserve something to ease the grieving families."

Blaze looked all around, flustered. Moon wondered, if she couldn't read Blaze's mind, she'd probably be able to tell her thoughts just from looking at her - she had no poker face whatsoever. "Um, I-I… of course, what about gold? I can give you gold from the treasury?"

"That gold is meant for the SandWings!" Qibli burst before being shushed by Kinkajou and Winter.

"Many MudWing villages were burned down in the early days of the war," said Moorhen. "And one of our most sacred sites, the mangrove plateau. It will take a lot to rebuild."

"Not as much as the Summer Palace you destroyed!" Coral hissed. "It was made by magic hundreds of years ago, it was irreplaceable, and your brutes burned it down."

"Rebuilding won't be an issue," said Darkstalker a little loudly so that he could regain their attention. "Dragons should be focused on healing and reclaiming their lives - not exhausting themselves rebuilding what cannot be replaced. Magic will do that."

Is that wise? Moon asked. Giving them magic? What's to stop them from asking for more?

Let them. And then he twisted to pick up two stones from the closest garden patch. He whispered over them, and when he finished there was a flash of blue light - Moon knew that was purely for the sake of theatrics. He opened his palms and the two rocks floated across the terrace to gracefully land in the talons of Coral and Moorhen, he stared in both wonder and apprehension. "This is a one time use spell," Darkstalker informed them. "Point them to the structure you wish to rebuild and say its name. Then it will be rebuilt to as it was when it was last intact. I also took the liberty of making certain only you two could perform these tasks with your stones."

"Magic…" Ruby's voice was tinged with something strange. Moon could read something wrestling in the SkyWing's mind - Ruby had been taught her whole life to reject magic and anything else "odd". But she could see plainly the benefits that could come from such a gift. Finally, she seemed to make a decision, and asked Darkstalker: "I want something that will heal the sick and injured. My hospital is functioning well but I don't want to have to sell any more of my tribe's sacred treasures to heal them."

Coral gave a loud scoff. "Appalling to think that you're treating the sick where so many dragons died. That arena should've been torn down."

"SkyWings pride themselves on not discarding something that could still prove to be useful. I don't see how what we do with our own territory has anything to do with you."

"Nothing to do with me?!" Coral echoed in quiet fury. "Scarlet took countless prisoners of war - from all the tribes - and made them fight in her arena, her butcher's den! You cannot erase that fact!"

"And you chained prisoners to sandbars so that they would drown at high tide," Ruby snapped back.

"It's not the same. My husband died in that arena!"

A murmur rippled through the attending dragons. Moon's eyes went to Tsunami, who looked frozen to the spot, expression fixed in fear. Darkstalker, she urged, You have to stop them.

He nodded and held up his talons. "Ladies, please-"

"So that's what this is about?" Ruby said, baring her fangs, ignoring their audience. "You want some big apology for the death of your consort?"

"His name was Gill," Coral hissed. "And an apology would be a start. I wasn't even given back his body! I want you, or your mother, or her champion -" she threw a murderous look at Peril "-to admit what you did!"

"My mother did awful things but killing your husband wasn't one of them. The SkyWings won't pay reparations for something we didn't do."

"You made a spectacle of him! If you didn't kill him then who?"

"Ask your own daughter!" Ruby snarled.

Silence.

Coral blinked several times, her mind stuttering in confusion. She turned slowly to look at Tsunami. There was a pleading in her gaze, a grief stricken look that begged for her daughter to say this was untrue. But Tsunami stared back, unable to deny it but also unable to find the words to explain herself. Even Turtle was staring at Tsunami like she was a complete stranger, tears in his eyes. And that was when Coral finally understood the truth. Tears did not escape her eyes, but her legs trembled and she quickly sat and then laid down before she could fall. She stared into empty space, her mind crashing, her heart breaking. Commander Shark glared at Tsunami.

Blaze grunted as she reached for a platter of dates. "This is meant to be a party, not a catfight."

"Enough, Blaze," Darkstalker chided softly. He looked at Ruby. "That was unnecessary. Your wish for magic is denied this time."

Ruby ducked her head like a dragonet admonished by their tutor.

Oh dear, Darkstalker said, there'll be consequences for poor Tsunami later.

"Getting back to the subject of reparations," said Glory, distracting everyone's attention. "What about the rainforest? Are you going to use your magic to undo all the damage your tribe did? We were displaced, those you captured were experimented on, and our home was destroyed in our absence."

"Not all the NightWings are guilty," Moon tried to say, understanding Glory's rightful anger but needing to defend some of her tribe. "Most of them didn't want to do that, but they were following orders and forced to comply."

"The NightWings meddling in everyone's business started all this," said Clay. "They need to face some kind of justice."

"And for our crimes," said Darkstalker, "our Queen offers her most sincere apologies. Her council is willing to submit to any demands for reparations you request."

They are? Moon asked.

They will if they don't want to make my life difficult. And I will impress upon them how no one with a sense of self preservation should want to make my life difficult…

Glory's eyes narrowed, her thoughts calculating like she was managing a chess board. "NightWings are renowned for their scientific knowledge. You will give up to us your knowledge in botany and engineering so that we can use it to rebuild our home and village."

"I could give you magic that will encourage the trees to regr-"

"No." Glory dismissed sharply. "Magic will not be necessary where nature and the work of good talons will do just as well. But I will also demand that you give up Morrowseer's lead officers, the ones you say are responsible for the crimes against my tribe."

"Including Mastermind!" Kinkajou said fiercely. "He hurt us. Both on the volcano and in the rainforest. Tamarin told me. He needs to be on that list!"

Darkstalker was quiet for a moment, then nodded. "Agreed. We will do a formal investigation, round up the perpetrators and then give them to your custody at a specified time and place."

"That's… more reasonable than I thought you would be." Glory's tone showed how she was struggling between confusion and suspicion.

"Why is it everyone always assumes the worst of me?" Darkstalker asked with a chuckle. "It's like you think I'm out to murder you all,"

"You are," Winter growled.

Darkstalker stilled and slowly turned his head to look down his nose at Winter. Moon had never seen what Turtle had told her he saw when Darkstalker first arose from the mountain, not until this moment. In his glowing silver eyes, Moon saw the coldest hate she'd ever seen in him. It was only there for a fraction of a second, and then gone. But even so his smile became a little too cynical, showing off the gleam of his sharp teeth a little too much. "Prince Winter, tsk-tsk-tsk, that wasn't very diplomatic of you. Yes, I admit I have done bad things in the past, but I also spent two thousand years trapped in the earth to pay for those crimes. I think I've served my time. Should I be punished more?"

"That depends on your remorse," came a voice.

Everyone turned. Blaze cheered, Darkstalker's mouth fell open, Winter sighed in relief. Queen Glacier descended from the sky, landing in her spot between Ruby and Coral. Behind her came her brother Narwhal and a middle aged dragoness, a fierce and scarred warrior, General Ivory. All three of the IceWings wore gleaming silver armour, looking both as if ready for battle and as if they had stepped out of a fantastical painting. In each of their ears gleamed an amber earring - Qibli's earring. Darkstalker's eyes were fixed on those earrings, a look of confusion on his face. The walls around his mind were not concrete and Moon could see that he was trying to search the futures. Horror filled him to realise he could no longer see futures that involved the IceWings - they were hidden from his sight.

"Oh Glacier, you made it!" Blaze clapped her talons together. "I knew you wouldn't - you never miss my parties!"

"Apologies for my tardiness, Blaze," said Glacier though her cold blue eyes never left Darkstalker. "I was delayed. I hope I haven't missed much."

"We were discussing reparations," said Sunny. "To make the first steps towards lasting peace."

"Good." Glacier sat with her wings half open in perfect parade rest, looking every bit the warrior-queen. "Though I hope none of you are letting this monster dictate the terms. As he said, he has served two thousand years of punishment, but in my opinion that means naught when I have it on good authority that he hasn't changed a bit."

"What nonsense," Darkstalker snorted derisively. "If you had left your kingdom for more than five minutes in the past six months, you would know that I am much changed from two thousand years ago. The fact that your tribe is unharmed should attest to that."

"Is that a threat?"

"No, it's a fact."

Moon gently put her talon on his arm. "Darkstalker, calm down."

"Maybe we should question your motives," said Coral, lifting her head from her grieving repose. Her eyes were bloodshot but still she shed no tears (she refused to look weak before her rivals) and her voice was husky. "One of my ancestors, Fathom, was your enemy, and now it seems you have taken revenge by kidnapping my daughter, Anemone."

"How can I kidnap a runaway child?" Darkstalker asked, his voice dripping with venom. "Do you mean the child that managed to escape all your guards, all your soldiers, and swam halfway round the continent before you or any of your incompetent soldiers knew she was gone? And don't let your brother Shark take all the credit - I can see it in his mind. He knew half a day before you did that Princess Anemone was gone and elected not to tell you to improve the chances that Anemone would fall to some bad fate."

Coral whirled on her brother. "Is this true? Am I surrounded by traitors?!"

Shark's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. "B-But - I mean-!"

"Not that you have much to be worried about, Queen Coral," Darkstalker continued scathingly. "Anemone was perfectly safe as she tried to weasel into my Kingdom, to learn everything she could about magic, contemplating half the time on how best to use it to kill you-"

"Darkstalker-" Moon tried to step in but he ignored her.

"And then when I wouldn't give in to her spoiled brattish nature, she chose to attack my fellow advisor, Moon, in a jealous rage. After ignoring 32 sons, killing one daughter, alienating a second, with your third you raised a problem. Maybe fate will look more kindly on Princess Auklet but I doubt it."

"Where is Anemone?!" Coral demanded.

Darkstalker reached up and unhooked the odd fish earring in his right ear. He held it out in his palm. "Here." There was a flash, and suddenly the earring was gone. Instead Anemone was on the ground looking about wildly in confusion. The moment she saw her mother, Anemone burst into tears and ran to her. Coral immediately swept her up in her wings, holding her close, the tears finally falling. Tsunami also looked stricken and went to go to her mother and sister. But Coral saw her coming and took a step away from her. The elder princess froze, distressed at the rejection.

That was cruel and uncalled for! Moon snapped at him angrily. You didn't need to traumatise and humiliate them!

They wanted to test me, to see if they could bully me, and I played my hand. Plus I returned Anemone to her mother safely just like you wanted.

"You see," Glacier said. "He still uses his magic to play with dragons!"

"How long were you planning to keep the princess like that before finally giving her back to her mother?" Glory demanded.

Darkstalker sighed through his nose in frustration. "She was perfectly safe. I had planned to give her back after the meeting in private, but instead, someone chose to stir up trouble." He gave a pointed look to Glacier.

"This is sidetracking things," said Moorhen. "We need to get back on topic."

Glacier look disgusted. "How can you even think of continuing this farce with him? Can't you see what he is?"

Moorhen held up her magic rock. "He's the one actually doing something to help the MudWings."

"And things were going perfectly well until you showed up," Ruby added at her IceWing neighbour.

"Why are we still fighting?" Blaze groaned. "I thought this was about peace, about congratulating me! Help me to be a better queen please!"

"We will, Blaze," said Darkstalker. "No one expects you to notice these things right away."

"I am your ally, Blaze," Glacier growled. "Not him. Stand with me against him."

The SandWing Queen pouted. "No offence, Glacier, but he and his NightWings are my neighbours now too, maybe I need to not start a war with them. And he's not the one ruining my party."

"Maybe peace would be better," said Coral, lifting her head from where she'd been huddled over Anemone. "Stop the fighting and put all this behind us."

Glory threw her a look. "You just said how we need to question Darkstalker's motives."

"That was then, this is now. Your new to being queen. You wouldn't understand. Know when to fight and when not to."

"Agreed," said Moorhen.

Moon's head went from one dragon to the other rapidly, her stomach dropping with every word they spoke. Something was off, she could feel it in the air. The queens didn't feel right. Their minds were crowding in on her as she tried to pick apart their brains to find the root of this thing that was irking her so much. Why were they bickering like dragonets, why were they contradicting earlier statements? She dove into their minds, deeper still, and found in their thoughts a wanting to trust… Darkstalker. And the only ones not affected were Glacier and Glory… the only ones wearing the earrings.

A sense of abandonment, a stroke of grief pierced Moon's heart. Was Darkstalker bewitching them? Why? To what end? She looked up at him but he wasn't looking at her, he was watching the queens argue, like he was trying to find a way to jump in. He wasn't listening to her, that much had been made clear throughout this evening. If he was the conductor of this foul orchestration then she needed to disrupt him.

She looked across the circle at Winter and saw the same bewilderment in his expression. She didn't want to do this, every cell in her body was revolting at the idea. But there was no other choice. Talon held out she mouthed a single word to her IceWing friend. Immediately, he produced the Skyfire Ring from where he'd hidden it and tossed it across the terrace to her.

It sailed through the air, seeming to suck the moon and starlight all around it. Moon couldn't look away as its dark coldness came towards her. No one seemed to notice as she caught it and immediately slipped it onto her finger.

The world went silent.