Obsidian yawned as his wings stretched outward, catching the warm morning rays from the rising sun. His talons felt sore from standing on them for so long, as he had lost track exactly how long he had watched the stars with Winter .
"We should go get some shut eye before classes start," he stated slowly.
Winter nodded, still facing away from him. "You go on ahead, I'm going to stay a little longer."
"Mmf" He admired the sunrise for a few more moments before turning back to the rapidly brightening halls of Jade Mountain. Just as he was about to walk back into the tunnel he heard Winter call out.
"By the way, you're stuck with us for classes for today."
He stopped, feeling a grin spread across his face. "Thank you."
Winter snorted " Don't thank me thank Sunny, she wouldn't let me leave the healing center until I promised I ask you. " Of course she did.
"Oh, well thanks' anyway." He said. He walked slowly back to his room, feeling his heavy talons drag against the stony floor. He wasn't entirely sure about his feelings for Sunny, but he was grateful that she decided to let him participate in class.
"Keep telling yourself that…" Mamba tittered.
You Hush. He snapped back. It took another 15 minutes to find his way back to his room. Feeling his eyelids growing heavy, he collapsed into the hammock. Closing his eyes for the rest of the night…
…
And by night I mean 5 seconds as a flashing Yellow and Pink blur tackled him head-over-tail out of his hammock.
"WAKEY WAKEY BANANAS AND BAKEY" Kinkajou screeched, slamming up and down on his chest. Turning what looked like thousands of colors at the same time
WHYYYYYYY
"I'M GOING TO MURDER THAT RAINWING," Mamba screeched Adding to his panic. Kinkajou expertly forced every smidgen of air out of his lungs, the room spinning with rainwing colors. He felt himself go limp as darkness flooded his vision.
Kinkajou sighed, clambering off of him. Her colors fading from Brain Scorching to eyesore. He gasped, the world rushing back to meet him as he heaved on the ground. If he had anything in his stomach he would have thrown it up.
"You got to work on your stamina, Moon and Qibli last at least 15 seconds before passing out." Kinkajou commented. staring down at him thoughtfully.
"I'm surprised they could last 5" Mamba growled. Rubbing his chest, he stumbled to his feet. "I appreciate the alarm but could you at least wake me up first before you do that?" Or not do it at all?
Kinkajou cackled. "No way, the expressions y'all make as you wrieth in panic is to die for." She giggled. He'd never heard a sound more terrifying.
Qibli poked his head into the room, an apologetic smile fresh on his face.
" Sorry, we haven't quite gotten through to Kinkajou about that , even Turtle hasn't been able to convince her."
Kinkajou sighed dreamily, "Its so fun to do it to Turtle, he always yelps so cutly."
He opened his mouth then closed it. He didn't really want to know more about the rainwings new questionable "hobby"
Mamba snorted " Questionable, is the last word I would use to describe that. "
"K, well Ima go wake up the others' ' Kinkajou bounced out of the room, leaving him and Qibli to stare at each other awkwardly. He shifted uncomfortably as the silence filled the air.
Qibli smiled trying to break the tension, "C'mon, let's meet up with the others before Kinkajou suffocates them." Qibli turned to leave, but stopped as he noticed him hesitate. " Something wrong?"
He jerked . "nothing , it's just… Do you guys really want me around? I just feel like I'm barging into your group and... " he trailed off, leaving the rest felt like he was stepping on a lake that had just frozen over, with no way to know how thick the Ice was.
Qibli waved dismissively. "Hey like it or not you're stuck with us, We don't care whether or not you're a hybrid, in fact most dragons don't. " he chuckled. " Besides, Winter has enough shiny scales for all of us combined." Leaning in closer his smirk widened into a grin.
"He hides his scale polish behind his books. It's really funny watching him put it on his scales."
He felt his shoulders soften as if a small weight he didn't know he had, lifted from his shoulders. "Thanks" Wait…he raised an eyebrow. " You watch your classmate lather scale polish on his body?." Qibi's entire body froze as he stared back at him.
"Don't tell Kinkajou"
He felt a grin spread across his face as he noted the genuine fear spreading across the Sandwings face.
"Ohhhh, I dont know… I'm sure a certain Icewing would love to hear about a certain Sandwing spying on him."
Qibli hopped from talon to talon, "Just forget I ever said anything, Please" Waaaay ahead of you. Obsidian thought. He would never actually blackmail Qibli for anything and didn't plan to tell Winter or Kinkajou about the polish. Well not right now at least.
Qibli laughed, the sound sounding horse and forced. "Well we better catch up with the others, Class starts in two minutes." Qibli dashed out of the room so fast he nearly skidded into the next archway. With him following close behind.
He would later reflect whether Qibli told him about the polish on purpose to get him comfortable and draw the attention to him, instead of moping about himself.
"He's surprisingly nice for a Sandwing…" Mamba commented begrudgingly. His grin grew wider. "Wow, someone you actually like? Careful, you might actually have empathy." "Shut it Smoke snorter" Mamba growled.
"You sound like Winter," he shot back.
"HEY SMOKE BREATHER, YOU COMING OR NOT? I'M NOT GOING TO BE LATE BECAUSE OF YOU"
He followed after Qibli, smiling as he went.
…
"UUUUUUUUHHH" Math is SOOOO BOOOOORING," Kinkajou groaned. Obsidian chuckled, he'd actually enjoyed math and watching kinkajou slowly shirival as she turned a pale sleepy blue was very amusing. "I thought it was kinda fun," he said.
"Qibli turned up next to him, walking beside them " Yeah It's not bad, although Thorn already taught me most of the material." Winter snorted. "Of course she did, Although anyone could figure out basic multiplication."
"What's that?" Kinkajou asked. He heard an audible groan from Turtle behind them. Qibli laughed, " Only the subject we've been learning almost all semester."
"Oh, Well I wasn't paying attention," Kinkajou said dismissively, her scales turning a forest green with spots of blue and lime.
"How can she be so carefree?" Mamba asked. "She's going to fail if she keeps this up." Obsidian frowned slightly. "You got to learn how to give people more confidence."
"Ok. I am confident the Rainwing will fail."
"How'd you like it, Obsidian? wasn't too hard for you?" Moon asked quietly. He stiffened before forcing himself to relax. He hadn't gotten the chance to confront her again since she saw the nightwings, although both Mamba and him were a lot more careful with keeping barriors up around their minds. Based on the others, I don't think she's told them yet. I trust her, but I need to talk with her again soon.
" I Thought Math was pretty easy, I really liked Art class though." They all nodded in agreement. He'd taken an immediate liking to Art class, He felt much more comfortable with a brush in his hand than with anything else. It just felt… right. Like it was what he was supposed to do. He hadn't made anything good but it was still fun.
Mamba rolled her eyes, well as much as you can inside someone's head. "Painting is a waste of time, I'd much rather fight than paint a stupid flower."
He frowned mentally, it was disappointing how Mamba deflected problems with violence. "Maybe to you," he thought back. " Art is my way of conveying the stories and emotions that I have."
" Mamba snorted dismissively. " Yeah Right, as if painting a stupid picture could convey any sort of emotion." He was about to protest when surprisingly Winter spoke up.
" I enjoy the way the paint mixes and flows the way I intend it too. Although I still suck at it." he said, a hint of nervousness entering his normally cool tone.
Qibli laughed " Are you kidding Winter? If you can't paint, then my tail is an Aardvark." A dark blue appeared on Winter's face.
"Yeah" Kinkajou Said. " Your Painting of the Icewing Kingdom was SOOO COOOL" Even Tsunami liked it, and she's… well she's Tsunami
Winter Growled. " I got the paints all mixed up, the Ice looked more like frozen ground than actual Ice."
"Isn't Ice just-" Turtle tried to protest but Winter raked his talons against the ground interrupting him and sending up sparks. " My art's only good for a cheap doormat. I don't dese-"
Moon stepped in front of him, stopping them in their tracks. A hard glint appeared in her emerald eyes. "Stop selling yourself short Winter, You're a talented and skilled painter and an amazing friend," she raised a talon before placing it gently on Winter's chest" You have a good heart Winter, stop breaking yourself down when you've grown so far." Winter's entire body seemed to shudder, he looked away from Moon, staring at the wall.
Qibli's smile dipped and softened "You're part of the Jade Winglet, you're one of us and nothing can ever change that." he added his own talon to Winter's shoulder.
Kinkajou giggled. "Like it or not your stuck with us"
"One way or the other." Turtle finished.
Winter's mouth opened and closed several times before he finally shut it. He dipped his head. " Thanks"
Obsidian felt out of place as he stared at the group in front of him, he felt like he was watching something really personal that he shouldn't have seen. An Overwhelming feeling of longing hit him so hard it almost hurt, squeezing his chest like a vice. The tightness slowly rising to fill his throat, making it hard to breathe. The Ice is breaking. He felt tears rising to his eyes, He hurried ahead before the others could notice desperately trying to keep the tears from falling. You can't force a puzzle piece into an already finished puzzle. It was then that he realized why he felt like this. I wish… I wish I could have that though, that companionship, that love. I've never had that. He slowed to a walk, the tight feeling fading back into his chest as he quickly wiped the wetness from his eyes.
"I know how you feel," Mamba said, surprising him.
"You do? Really?" he was surprised the distant sandwing was deciding to talk with him so deeply, if not at all.
He felt Mamba shrug, " The closest person I've ever had was my sister, and I've never had much connection since. Besides a few dragons here and there. Although nobody close enough i could truly call my friends"
"Was it because of-"
"Yes, Among other things. "... He paused for a moment letting the silence fill the hallways.
"Why now?" he asked.
"Why now what?" She shot back. Her voice warned him that he was dancing a fine line.
"You know," he shrugged. " Decide to talk to me, You've never been this nice before."
" I can be nice." she snapped. " When I want to…"
she growled. "To answer your previous question I don't know, there's not exactly anyone else I can talk to in here, and I'm tired of just replaying the same memories.
"Can you show me them?" he asked, not expecting her to answer.
Mamba hesitated. " frustratingly no, I can read and see a lot of memories, but most of them are locked up tight past a week or so. You need some kind of trigger in order to unlock them."
"So can you help guide me to those triggers?" He asked, now excited at the prospect of getting some of his memories back. To him it always felt like there were jagged mirrors in his head, deflecting and cutting him when he tried to move. If Mamba could help navigate through those mirrors or memories or whatever they were. It would be a lot less of a headache.
Mamba sighed. "Fine, I'll keep a lookout ok."
He smiled. " Thank You,"
Mamba snorted dismissively " No promises Nightwing."
He felt her fade back into his head. He was getting better at sensing when she was watching or not. I wonder if it's like my dream or whatever it was, watching through the eyes while feeling an unfamiliar body that still feels like your move, almost around you. He felt bad for Mamba, he only had to live through another's eyes for a few minutes, he couldn't imagine what that would feel like after a few days or weeks, immersed in another body and another mind with memories and thoughts that weren't your own swirling around you constantly. I need to figure out a way to get her to her original body or whatever's left of it. He was determined.
"OBSIDIAN." Turning he noticed Qibli and the others catching up. He considered running ahead to class, if he hurried he could probably make it before they caught up to him. He sighed, plastering a smile across his face as they caught up.
"Where'ja go? We didn't mean to scare you off." Qibli said, his eyebrows creasing slightly.
"Hmm?" "Oh, don't worry about it, I just wanted to give you some privacy." He said ,waving his talons dismissively. It was better for both parties if he didn;t try to explain why he had gone ahead. I'll only make things worse.
Moon hummed softly. "We should head to History, we were already late last time and we will probably be sent to Tsunami if we are late again." They all shuddered, Tsunami was a good principle and kept her temper under control, but no one in Phyria would want to be on the receiving end of the Seawing's bad side.
Kinkajou zipped past them, a yellow and pink swirling blur rushing ahead.a " LAST ONE THERE IS A ROTTEN MANGO"
"WAIT FOR US BEFORE YOU START, YOU VIPER. " Winter roared, surprising all of them as he raced after her.
Laughing, they hurried to catch up to the two, practically trampling each other in the process. They stopped at the entrance, all of them out of breath but smiling except Winter, who had brought up the rear.
"HA" Kinkajou giggled " Wiiiiiteeeees the Maaaaango" she said pointing at said Icewing, who then shrugged and pushed past them into the classroom. " I didn't cheat to win. " he said, a small smirk appearing on his face before turning away.
Kinkajou's face flashed red and orange as she stared after the Icewing. " I did not cheat you Mango head, you're just a sore loser." she pouted.
"Well to be fair you did cheat" he pointed out. I would have been dead last If Winter has not slowed down. He then wondered if he had intentionally slowed down to prevent him from being last.
"Well he didn't have to saaaaay iiiiiit" Kinkajou moaned. A gong toned in the distance, marking the start of class.
Qibli grinned " We better join Winter before ol' squiddy marks us late." Turtle glanced at Qibli, eyes furrowed as he opened his mouth slowly.
"He means Webs" Moon Said. Kinkajou laughed and Turtle quickly closed his mouth, a red hue adding to his green face.
They walked through the doorway together entering a spacious classroom. He stopped dead as recognition slammed into him like a tidal wave, rooting him to the spot. The room had few windows, with oil and flamesilk candles and lights hanging from the cave ceiling. Looking at the front of the class a tired looking Seawing paced next to a large map and chalkboard various scrolls open on the desk before him. Webs,history teacher, and one of The DOD's Guardians he remembered. Several racks of scrolls lined either side of the walls next to the chalkboard, and he noticed small clips on all of the scrolls to hold them up on the chalkboard. He noticed a small hook near the top of the board. Most of the others were already seated, a small desk containing several blank pieces of parchment and quills.
(How the desks work is the dragonets sit normally behind one, im picturing them sitting how a dog normally sits, with their front talons either in front of them or on the desk. They don't have chairs. A few stand up to write but basically just picture how a dog normally sits, and just picture that but eloquent and a bit fancier. )
"Ahh You must be Obsidian," Webs said. He gestured to a separate pile of empty scrolls near the side of the room.
"Grab a scroll and Sit down with…" he hesitated as he glanced at a paper in front of him "The Jade Winglet over there." He pointed and Qibli, smiling, waved him over.
"T-Thank you" he stammered, grabbing the scroll and quill before quickly finding a seat behind Winter near the back of the room. His face felt hot as he sat down, it felt like he could feel every pair of eyes boring into him. Some were interested he was a hybrid, some because he was new, and others, in disgust. He kept his head low as stared at his desk.
His head throbbed painfully ,it felt like the shards in his mind were spinning around his head. Creating a painful tornado around his thoughts that stabbed at his brain with every movement. Uh this is awful. He forced himself to breathe slowly and deeply,closing his eyes and mind against the familiar lights and sensations that surrounded him.
"You ok?" Someone said quietly. Opening his eyes he noticed Moon leaning towards him slightly, her brows furrowed. He forced a smile on his face. "Never better, just a headache," Moon's brows furrowed deeper but she backed off. Forcing his attention to the front he did his best to ignore his spinning thoughts, centering his mind on the Seawing Teacher.
"Now can anyone tell me what our topic is for today." Webs said, using a straight stick in his talon to point to the class. Umber raised his talon.
"Umber?"
"Uhhh, the Sandwing Succession?" Webs nodded, lowering a map of Phyriia over the board"
"Correct Umber, we have already gone over the early stages of the war. Including the Skywing Rebellion and the various allied tribes that swapped back and forth during the majority of the war. " "And today," he continued. " We will be discussing the End of the war, The Dragonet Prophecy." He noticed the room seemed to lighten as Dragonets stood straighter in their desks. (I know there not technically standing but you know what i mean)
"Finally,Kinkajou whispered not-so quietly . '' I've been waiting AAAAALLL YEEEAR for this.``
"Sszt," Winter hissed.
"You shszist," Kinkajou hissed back. The class giggled as Webs glowered at the two. Kinkajou wilted into her desk apologetically, while Winter just rolled his eyes, turning his head away in a bored expression.
Webs stared at them for a moment longer before returning to the Map. " Now for review, the War of Sandwing Succession started 4991 AS. After several scavenger's attempted to Steal from the Sandwing Treasury. They Succeeded, killing Queen Oasis in the process and vanishing into the desert.
Right, Stone killed her. Although Heath "Dragonslayer" took all the credit and Left Rose Behind. He blinked while sitting up at his desk. How had he known that?
"It was later revealed that Blister took most of the treasure, however the scavengers managed to get away with several valuable artifacts." Webs turned to face the class. " Can anyone tell me what those are?"
Moon raised her talon hesitantly along with a skywing on the left side and Qibli, smiling as he did so. Webs eyes flicked to Qibli before he pointed to Moon's upraised talon. "Moon?"
" The Sandwing Scepter and… The Eye of Onyx?" She answered hesitantly.
"Correct," Webs said nodding. " You missed one of the artifacts, however, can anyone tell me what it is?"
Qibli's hand remained steady in the air while the skywings and Moon's lowered reluctantly. His head constantly throbbed as Moon's words reverberated through his head. The Eye of Onyx, The Eye of Onyx... Where have I heard that before?
He brought his focus back to Webs as he sighed and pointed to Qibli
"Qibli?".
Qibli smirked "The L-"
"Lazulite Dragon" He interrupted, feeling something click in the back of his mind. One of the more mysterious animus objects from the treasury. The books never explained what it did and what it was for. I can't quite remember if Sunn- the thought faded back into the swirling mirrors of his conscience. He realized he had interrupted Qibli as the rest of the class stared at him. He looked at Qibli, trying to appear apologetic.
Qibli glanced at him for a moment, but shrugged dismissively as if to say, it's ok I'm just surprised you knew the answer.
Webs audibly tutted. "Correct, but next time please raise your hand." He turned back to the Map, grabbing the stick by his desk before pointing at the Sandwing Palace.
"Sorry" he murmured. He didn't know why he spoke up like that. He'd never done that before. He tried desperately to find the memory again but it had gone as quickly as it had arrived. He growled softly, He couldn't remember anything past a few weeks ago and yet why did everything Webs talk about sound so Familiar? Was he somehow in the war? A Soldier? A Hideaway?
He squirmed silently as Webs continued to talk about the war. Looking around he could see most of the rest of the class doing the same. One of the Seawing's scales looked so pale you could almost mistake them for an Icewing.
Most people are still healing from the war, Everyone here has most likely either gone through or seen some messed up stuff. Mamba commented flatly.
Well that doesn't explain why it all's so familiar. He thought back, his head buzzing with various questions and answers. What's so important about the Lazulite Dragon anyway?
He felt Mamba shrug dismissively, " All Sandwings know that the Lazulatie is some sort of important animus touched object passed down through the, "Royal Line '' she emphasized sarcastically. "As for why you think it's important enough to remember.. I Don't know and don't really care. "
Hmph '' thanks for the help. Glancing at Moon, he caught the nightwing staring at him but she quickly looked away. He shifted, even though he knew about Moon's mind reading there wasn't a lot he could do about it other than the hope that Mamba could keep her out.
He felt the feeling fade slightly as he listened as Webs explained and talked about unfamiliar treaties and graphic bloody battles. He felt slightly disappointed that nothing else jumped out at him. Nevertheless the history itself was fascinating, even with Web's monotonous voice.
Webs began."Now as most of you know, I was one of the guardians for the Dragonets of Destiny-,"
"Who were the other guardians?" a rainwing near the front blurted. Pain shot and ricocheted through his head. Shattering and reforming as the words marched their way into his throat. Clawing up and out of his mouth. His voice sounded higher and deeper at the same time.
"Dune, Kestrel, and him, Although Asha and Hviter died before they could raise the Dod, along with the skywing egg which Burn shattered." He gasped convulsed slightly as memories surfaced and faded from his head. Like lighting strikes illuminating one thought or another before disappearing. WHY DO I KNOW THIS? WHAT IS HAPPENING.
Webs looked visibly shaken as he gaped at him. The rest of the class started quizzically in his direction.
"H-How, we never" Web's eyes seemed to clear as he shook himself. Turning back to the map yet again. "Tsunami or one of the others must have told" he muttered, more to himself than to him or the class.
He growled as quietly as he could, Slamming the thoughts down as he forced his face into a neutral, bored expression.
Moon stared at him eyes wide. He shrugged, trying to play it off. He felt sweat roll down his face as another wave of memories pummeled his consciousness. I need to get this under control. Mamba can you…
"..."
Webs hesitantly continued, quickly regaining confidence as he talked." The history of The Dragonets of Destiny began when Morrowseer along with a few trusted others created a prophecy during the early stages of the war. Revealing the prophecy to the rest of the world through various ambassadors sent to different kingdoms containing this Message.`` Grabbing a scroll next to the map, he unrolled it, revealing the DOD Prophecy which he read aloud.
The Nightwings of Phyria have come to an agreement. We will not interfere with the current disagreements of Sandwing Succession. However with our gift of foresight an ancient prophecy has been unearthed that will shape the coming war. We have sent this message to all the queens and tribes of Phyria to give you hope in the trying times ahead. May your talons stay sharp.
"Drama queens" Mamba muttered
The Dragonet Prophecy
When the war has lasted twenty years …
the dragonets will come.
When the land is soaked in blood and tears …
the dragonets will come. Find the SeaWing egg of deepest blue, Wings of night shall come to you. The largest egg in mountain high,
will give to you the wings of sky.
For wings of earth, search through the mud
for an egg the color of dragon blood.
And hidden alone from the rival queens,
The SandWing egg awaits unseen.
Of three queens who blister and blaze and burn,
two shall die and one shall learn
if she bows to a fate that is stronger and higher,
she'll have the power of wings of fire.
Five eggs to hatch on brightest night,
five dragons born to end the fight.
Darkness will rise to bring the light.
The dragonets are coming …
The words echoed and reverberated through his mind like a gong, slamming through his strenuis defenses like paper. Something was important about those lines, he knew them, almost by heart. He cradled his head gently in one talon. Trying to steady himself as fragmented shards of memory began to take shape.
It was different from before, the words forming slowly and carefully. The words surfacing then cementing slowly back into his head like missing pieces of a puzzle. He could hear the rest of the class, including Webs drone on faintly in the background before a snippet of conversation broke through his trance.
" Well of course the Prophecy is real" A Skywing snorted in the corner, a hellish scar crossing most of his face. " The eggs were there ,Two Sisters died, And the other snivling at the talons of an Outclaw" He heard Qibli growl dangerously next to him. Flame ignored him.
"Well there's Glory," Moon pointed out, "She wasn't a part of the prophecy."
"And yet it still technically came true" Qibli pointed out, "no one knew Glory was even a Rainwing until Clay got bit."
"A viper, screaming, Clay shoving Starflight and the others out of the way. Glory, colors swirling green and white. Desperately trying to stop the poison. A blazing comet, threating to bathe the world in its rage.
He felt his breathing grow heavy as memories began to crowd in, it felt like his head was going to explode. I need to let it out… He felt his talons dig into the wood table in front of him, leaving deep gouges.
"Thank you Qibli, '' Webs said hurriedly, a small bead of sweat dripping down his face. " Now, please let's get back to-"
"What exactly is Wings of Fire?" Obsidian asked, he immediately felt his head lighten slightly, the memories halting their relentless march through his brain. The prophecy, The Dragonets, and the lies…
"Wings of night shall come to you, Darkness will rise to bring the Light, '' He continued. "Very interesting lines don't you think? They don't quite fit, do they?" He chuckled humorlessly, not expecting an answer.
"Technically it could be referencing how the volcano blew up and the Nightwings escaped to the rainforest, or it could be referencing the war in general." Qibli pointed out.
" True" Obsidian nodded, "Well, unless you count the nightwings' initial plan of taking over the rainforest, and killing or enslaving the rainwings with the help of Blister." He smiled as he noticed more than one nightwings flinch. He couldn't tell who was talking anymore, him, Mamba,... or someone else. Moon shook her head, staring at him with wide eyes. He shrugged dismissively. She didn't grow up on the volcano so why should she care about the nightwings reputation. She wasn't like the others and never could be.
Moon flinched and shriveled into her desk.
"Morrowseer and the queen made up the prophecy, they just wanted to use it to take over the rainforest. Honestly it's a miracle the DoD actually managed to pull it off." He gestured to Webs. "Why else would they be kidnapping and experimenting on Rainwing dragons and dragonets?"
The class stared at him, the silence and tension so thick you could cut it with your bare hand. He gasped and blinked as whatever it was finally dissipated back into his mind, leaving only fear behind.
What did I do, What did I do? He thought panicked,quickly glancing around the room. Everyone was staring either at him, or the other Nightwings. He felt his cheeks burn and heat up. He wished he could just find a dark hole and throw himself head-first into it. He glanced quickly at the other Jade Winglet members he could see.
Moon looked like she was still attempting to make herself smaller, trying to fade into the shadows of her desk and disappear. Winter snapped the quill he was holding, glowering venomously at the other nightwings. Kinkajou appeared partly transparent, flashes of red orange, and even bits of lime green flickering through her transparent scales. A tense anger filled the room, most of which directed towards the nightwings.
Obsidian opened his mouth, then closed it. What was said was said, and no amount of apologizing or explaining could fix that. Why… he pondered. He knew about the old Nightwing plan as if he had made it. But how was that possible? He never found any of the other Nightwings even remotely familiar. Most of the other Nightwings either look at him in disgust or ignore him entirely. Based on that, they had never seen or even heard of him until he arrived. They will now. He sighed, fidgeting on the stone floor.
After what felt like hours of silence, Webs coughed, awkwardly trying to divert the attention back to the board. "L-Let's move on, shall we?" Reluctantly the rest of the class began to slowly turn back to Webs, Winter was the last one to look away.
Obsidian tried to focus on the rest of the lecture refusing to meet anyone elses gaze, it felt like his head was in a blender of thoughts, feelings, emotions, regrets. All swirling in his head along with the prophecy. Webs words only adding memories and stirring the pot of belweldermint in his mind.
" I Can't block out our thoughts." Mamba growled, " You're remembering too much at once" Perfect, just perfect. He thought back, gritting his teeth. Slowly chewing on the edge of his mouth, he tried to keep himself from blurting out anything else. I need to be careful not to say anything I shouldn't know again.
"After The Dragonets escaped from the Skywing palace, Queen Scarlett seemingly disappeared. Many speculate as to where she could've gone but the most prevalent theory is that she escaped to the mountains to heal and gather strength."
Screw it " That not what-" Umber stomped down on his tail sharply. Obsidian bit down harder, feeling coppery blood fill his mouth. He glowered at Umber who shook his head slightly before motioning back to the board. Honestly I should thank him for that. He smiled softly at Umber. Trying to thank him without saying anything.
He managed to keep quiet for the rest of class,Web's monotonous drone filling his ears as memories and events danced through his head. Glancing at the hourglass near the door, he noticed that it was almost empty, with a centimeter or two of sand remaining. Qibli had pointed out the hourglass in the first class, explaining how it worked and the time it signified. Which was around an hour and half give or take the class.
He sighed with relief, closing his eyes as he listened to what he hoped was the last few minutes of class. Only a little longer.
Distantly, he heard another Sandwing near Qibli ask "Who came up with the idea to end the war?"
Rubbing his temples slowly, he smiled as the memory surfaced. Sunny came up with that little idea, she's so much smarter and braver than people give her credit for.
"Ahh yes the meeting at the Sandwing Palace, now that was a good Idea" Webs seemed to hesitate before continuing. "In fact I was the one that helped the Dragonets come up with the original plan."
His eyes shot open as he stared at Webs. There's no way he just...
Kinkajou's scales turned a purplish orange. "I thought Glory was the one who made it?"
Winter snorted, "It was probably Starflight, there's no way Tsunami or Sunny came up with the Idea." He felt his talons begin to clench, digging into the desk. Keep calm, it's not worth it. Umber shot him a warning glance and he nodded back tensely forcing a smile. Umber's frown only deepend.
Webs shook his head, " No, I came up with the idea after we discussed the issue together once Sunny decided to return from her little escapade."
"He Did," Mamba said. If there was one thing he loathed more than anything else it was people not getting the credit they deserve, ESPECIALLY if someone else tried to take credit. He felt his self control snap as his anger boiled over to rage, he was going to teach this Seawing a lesson and for once Mamba agreed with him. They spoke as one, keeping their tone Icy and Cutting. Reading his expression he felt a sharp sting in his tail from Umber, he Ignored it.
"Sunny Was the one to come up with that Idea not you, you useless talon-licking coward. You're almost twice her size and yet she has 10 times the Strength, Smarts, and Heart than you. Did you somehow forget that it was Sunny who brought you back the cactus juice? The others would have forgotten or let you die for being such a deadweight loser that had to be saved by dragonets." He didn't remember standing although he must have at some point. He felt like he was growing with every word, his focus zeroing in on the floundering, sorry excuse of a Seawing.
" I-I- How Did It? W-Who? '' Webs stammered. He had won but that wasn't enough.
" I'm surprised that they chose you as a history teacher. I guess they thought you were too pathetic to be anything else. I wonder, how does a wet strand of seaweed have a stronger spine than you?" He sneered, "I wonder if Riptide knows…"
THAT"S ENOUGH'' Webs roared, his face contorting to something similar to his own as he leapt forward to come crashing down in front of him.
In the distance a gong toned, signaling the end of class. No one moved.
They sneered, unimpressed. " Finally found your spine threatening a dragonet? Did Riptide ever realize that a worm would make a better fa-." Webs moved in a blur of motion, moving much faster than she thought was possible. Pain lanced across his face as Webs punched him, sending him toppling backward and out of the room. His eye immediately began to swell as he swayed unsteadily, feeling the connection shatter and fade away.
"Damn he's fast"
Webs was breathing heavily, his eyes dilating and contracting. "OUT he screamed, Grabbing the nearest desk, he heaved it at him. He felt the desk sail over his head as he ducked, the desk shattering against the hallway wall. He stumbled as his head pulsed with agony. Flashing faces, a screaming dragon, Pain lancing across his entire body.
" Its for your own goo-"
"OUT, OUT, OUT '' Webs roared, each '' out" punctuated with another object being thrown at him. What did I do, I went too far, Why? WHY? WHY? Im sorry mo-
He backed away ,his head continuing to throb as he glanced at the others, looking for help, for an explanation, for something, anything. He saw dragonets staring in horror, in fear, others in amusement and admiration. Still doging desks and papers he glanced at his Winglet.
Moon' head was cradled in her talons, her wings covering her body as her body racked with shudders. Qibli's face was a whirlwind of emotion, his body half raised as he looked torn between him and Moon. Kinkajou, her scales a whirlwind of white and green parts of her flickering in and out of sight as she curled up next to Turtle, his face strangely calm and expressionless.
He finally looks to Winter, feeling small tears running down his face. Winter's face is twisted in a snarl, his face contorted in disgust and hatred as he stared at him with those piercing Icy eyes. He felt something shrivial and shattered inside him as he turned and fled. A hundred eyes carving holes into his spine, he only felt one of them.
Eventually he stumbled into a much bigger area nearly tripping over a table, in the corner he could see cows, sheep, fish, and even a few goats herded into various small pens. Cafeteria, good, he needed something to eat and think after what he did. Taking a few deep breaths, he winced as his eyes continued to swell. I deserve it. Slowly meandering to one of the pens, he snatched a goat who was clopping by, quickly dispatching it with a small flick of his wrist.
For some reason, it only made him feel worse as he picked a spot near one of the darker corners of the room slowly taking a bite of his feathered meal, the meat helping him tear his thoughts away from his- the. Jade Winglet.
Things were going so well… Why did I have to go and screw everything up? He thought furiously, wiping the tears from earlier away. He yelped as he brushed against his bruised eye. His anger had long since faded, turning into regret and a strange sense of loss.
Why are you keening over dragons you met barely a week ago? Mamba snapped. " That sorry excuse of a guardian deserved it, you should have fought back and taught him a real lesson. He shook his head.
"That would've only made things worse, Webs might be cowardly and he might have deserved to be called out on, but we went too far. Taking another bite of his goat, He thought back to when Webs had taken credit for Sunny's idea. I don't know why that made me so angry. I remember Sunny and the Dod now, but I don't know from where. It's like a half opened scroll with most of its words written in invisible ink. He felt the goat's head shatter in his mouth, sweet blood and bone crunching in between his teeth like candy.
He sighed. I better lie low for a while, let Webs and the others calm down. He shuddered as he remembered how the others looked at him. Glancing down at his bloody talons. Like a monster.
"Welcome to the club" Mamba chuckled bitterly.He shifted slightly into a crouched position as more and more dragonets filed into the Prey Center.
Thankfully, he noticed none of the Jade Winglet or DoD, although he noticed quite a few of his classmates enter. Well it's hard to consider them clawmates when I've only spent one class with them.
By the end of the day, everyone will know about us." Mamba warned Lazily, "Well, if they didn't already" He sighed, we better go then before too many people recognize us. Standing, he quickly snapped up the last of his goat before slowly moving towards the exit, better to leave now before word spread. He stopped at the exit archway turning to look back at the Prey Center. He smiled sadly as he watched all the smiling dragonets, "So many Groups of all tribes and backgrounds" his grin wavered as a mudwing wrapped an arm around a Seawing, both of them laughing. I wish I had that.
"Pfff, as if" Mamba snarked. His smile faded completely as chills shot down his spine. A sandwing stood in the center of the crowd, a single dragon skull tattoo plastered on her neck. Their cold onyx eyes reminded him of Vulture as they stared daggers in his direction. They smiled coyly before another winglet ran in front of him, obstructing his view. By the time they moved the Sandwing was gone.
"Drama Queen '' Mamba noted dismissively. He felt his talons shaking as he frantically scanned the room for the Sandwing. Vulture sent them, The dragon tattoo proves it, I can't go back for help, I screwed up. Quickly backing up out of the room, he began to sprint down the hallways again. The feeling of claustrophobia from before returning.
Should I go for help? No they wouldn't believe me, they'd think I was lying to try to divert attention from what I did. What do I do, What do I do?
"Calm Down, I Recognize them, they're a low level wannabe assassin from Vultures Gang. Even you could take him in your sleep." Obsidian slowed slightly, How do you know about them? She paused, before sighing exasperated.
"I did a few jobs for him a long time ago no big deal, I don't work for Vulture if that's what you're asking."
" Well why didn't you mention that sooner?" he hissed. Based on how even Webs easily knocked him around he had no chance against an assassin. Even if that sandwing only had one tattoo that was one more than he had.
"Mention what sooner?"
He yelped, spinning around, nearly tripping on his own tail as he came face-to-face.
with Kinkajou's floating head.