What if Scarlet won? Part one

Instructions

Chapter one Ruby Ruby's head bowed, her crimson-stained talons trembling as they dripped with her own life force. Her gaze swept over the crowd, her eyes pleading as they beheld the terror-stricken faces before her. "Mother, please... I'll go," she begged, her head hanging in despair. "Let me just take Cliff and... We'll never set talon in the Sky Kingdom again." Scarlet's razor-sharp claws flashed in the dim light, and one of them sliced across Ruby's throat, releasing a gush of blood that poured down her chest like a river of rubies. "Never," Scarlet spat, her voice dripping with venom. "I want you to die." Ruby's eyes widened in horror as she felt her life ebbing away. She tried to scream, but her voice was silenced by the blood that filled her mouth. Scarlet's claws closed around her tail, and she was dragged to Soar like a rag doll. The dragon's expression was one of detached fascination as he removed the earring from Ruby's ear and quickly scribbled something on a small piece of parchment before replacing it. Ruby felt a strange sensation wash over her as the wound began to heal, the blood seeping from her throat vanishing as if by magic. But this temporary reprieve only delayed the inevitable. Scarlet pinned Ruby down, her fiery breath enveloping the younger dragon like a shroud. Ruby's screams echoed through the air as Scarlet continued to breathe fire, the flames dancing across her body like a macabre waltz. The crowd watched in horror as Ruby's body began to dissolve into a pool of blood and smoke, her scales melting and twisting into grotesque parodies of their former selves. As the flames finally died out, Ruby's vision began to clear. She looked around in confusion, taking in the gasps of horror from the crowd. And then she saw herself reflected in the glinting jewels of a nearby dragon's jewelry. Her face was a twisted mockery of its former self – melted and scarred, with jagged cracks splitting across every inch of her scales. Ruby's eyes, mercifully, were still closed, spared from the horrors that had been inflicted upon her. But everything else... everything else was ruined. She tried to spread her wings, but they were waxed and melted together, useless and immobile. Scarlet clapped her talons together, and lunged at Ruby with a triumphant cry. She plunged her talons into Ruby's chest and ripped out a still-pulsing heart. The organ thudded to the ground, beating weakly once... twice... before finally coming to rest. And in that moment, Ruby knew that she was truly gone – consumed by the very darkness she had feared.